Skipping Stones
by Reign of Rayne
Summary: Oneshot-turned-something-more. When Zangetsu travels back in time after a terrible war against Aizen and the Quincy, he does everything in his power to make sure that Ichigo doesn't grow up alone.
1. Chapter 1

_I should be writing for my other stories, but this idea popped into my head and there was no way I could let it sit. I'm sure you other authors know the feeling, or at least something like it. Enjoy!_

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><p>The little boy ran through the streets, his bright orange hair easily distinguishing him from the crowds of people that bustled past him. He slipped through the crowds, between people that didn't seem to notice that he was there, walking past them silently yet with more purpose than they could ever hope to have. They were stopped in time; he was trapped in motion.<p>

His face was lined with weariness that he should not have had, his steps weighed down with tragedy that should not have occurred but still did, still ruined any chance the boy felt he had at a happy life.

In no time at all yet all the time in the world, the boy made it to his destination. He went down the stone steps, his shoes making hard noises against them. He didn't bother with the railing, didn't need it. The stairs were ingrained in his memory, and he'd done this too many times to need such pointless safety measures.

His shoes hit the sidewalk and it was only there that the boy paused briefly, a hesitation that spoke volumes and nothing at all about his state of mind. Yet he continued, walking forward a few meters and then sitting down with his knees drawn up to his chest just in front of where the bank sloped down into the river. The ground beneath him was hard, but he either didn't notice or didn't care.

The sun was setting, its golden glow washing over the sky and painting it in brilliant hues of gold, highlighting the few clouds that drifted across the heavens. The entire river glowed with fading light, but its appeal was lost on the boy before it. His eyes stared sightlessly into the shifting waters, unseeing and lost in memory.

He threw a rock, aimlessly and carelessly, and tracked its motion with only his eyes as the stone arced down into the reflection of the sun on the water, momentarily distorting the shape. The ripples faded out quickly, too quickly, but the boy saw no other rocks nearby.

When he spoke, his voice was quiet, meant for his ears and his ears alone.

"Why won't you come back?" He muttered, his voice breaking. "Mommy . . . why can't you come back?"

Footsteps pulled the young boy out of his reverie and his head snapped up, childish hope filling his gaze and fragile hope filled his chest that _maybe she's come back_—

Reality crashed back down with jarring force as the boy realized that the teenager walking up to him was clearly not his mother, and he buried his head between his knees, pulling himself into a ball and wishing to disappear.

**"Hey, kid."**

The footsteps stopped, and the only sound was the gentle motion of the river as it flowed by.

**"Look at me."**

The boy shook his head minutely, not wanting to talk to strangers. His mom had told him not to, and now that she was gone—

He pulled himself tighter, trying to drag his thoughts away from that even though it was what pulled him to this spot. His heart ached, ached in a way he never thought possible, never even considered before, but now it was constant and never-ending.

The boy heard the innocuous shifting of fabric, and then the sound of someone sitting down beside him. The person took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

**"What's the matter with ya, kid? Ya look sad."** The boy could tell that the stranger was looking at him. **"It doesn't suit ya. Yer hair's too bright."**

"Go away," The boy said, his words muffled.

**"No."**

"Leave me alone."

**"That would just be wrong, kid."**

The boy squeezed his eyes shut, and he hated how his voice shook when he spoke. "Stop calling me 'kid'!"

The stranger was silent for a few minutes, which the boy was completely grateful for. A slight breeze drifted across the river, ruffling the boy's hair, but he didn't notice. He was lost in his own thoughts, and nearly forgot about the person sitting beside him until the stranger spoke again.

**"So what should I call ya? Assumin ya have a name, 'course."**

"I don't talk to strangers," the boy replied, his voice quiet.

**"My name's Zangetsu, and now I ain't a stranger."**

Another silence settled over the two while the boy wrestled with the idea of talking to the person who had sat down beside him and refused to move. After thinking it over, the boy gave in.

"I'm Ichigo."

**"Ichigo, huh? Why would anyone name their kid 'strawberry'?"**

"It means one who protects!"

**"Ya know, yer not that intimidatin when yer buried in yerself like that. So I'm stickin with Strawberry."**

Ichigo clenched his hands into fists, grit his teeth, and seriously considered trying out his karate talent on whomever was sitting next to him. He stopped himself, however, and instead tried to use words, like his mom. While doing so, he raised his head and looked, bleary-eyed, at Zangetsu, who was still sitting next to him. The teenager was vaguely out of focus, but Ichigo could clearly see that his hair was a shocking white, contrasting heavily with his black shirt.

"It means 'one who protects', like a king and his castle," Ichigo said, his expression daring the other to say something. "Not 'strawberry'."

**"A king? That ain't a bad name, then." **Zangetsu offered a grin. **"I'm gonna call ya that, 'kay?"**

Ichigo mouth twisted. "I'm not a king."

Zangetsu's expression darkened for a split second before going back to what it had been before. **"Sure ya are. Ya just don't know it yet."**

Ichigo made a small noise of acknowledgement—not agreement—and rested his head on his knees, staring into the river much like he had been doing before Zangetsu showed up.

Countless moments passed without either boy making a sound, until Ichigo heard Zangetsu get up.

**"I'll be right back, King."**

"I'm not a king!"

The protest went unheard as Zangetsu walked away, hands in the pockets of his orange cargo pants. Ichigo wondered whether they matched his own hair, and then decided that it really didn't matter.

Plus, Zangetsu's hair was white. Ichigo had never seen hair that color; at least, not as the only color on the person's head. Not to mention that Zangetsu's skin was also white, which made Ichigo think that the teenager could really use more time in the sun. That's what his dad was always telling him, anyway, and it seemed to make sense for the older boy's pale skin.

Ichigo's attention turned back to the water and the sunset that reflected so brightly off of it. He remembered talking about sunsets with his mom, and he wished he could get one more chance to do so.

"That's why I don't like sunsets," he mumbled, his eyelids drooping even though Ichigo didn't feel tired. "They're so sad."

Familiar footsteps approached again and Ichigo saw Zangetsu sit down next to him out of the corner of his eye, though he wasn't willing to turn his head away from the sunset before him. The teenager appeared to be carrying something, but Ichigo didn't feel curious enough to ask what it was.

The light of the sun had just begun to dim when Ichigo was startled out of his thoughts by a sharp splash, followed quickly by four more. He looked out to the river, wondering what the noises had been. Ripples spread out from various points on the river, only to be quickly swallowed up by the current.

Movement caught Ichigo's eye and he turned to his right just in time to see Zangetsu fling another rock across the river. The young boy's eyes widened as he saw the stone skip five times before finally sinking. Zangetsu noticed him looking and wordlessly offered Ichigo a stone from the large pile he had accumulated. Belatedly, Ichigo realized that the pile was what Shiro had been gathering a few minutes before.

Accepting the rock—it was impressively smooth—Ichigo shifted to face the river again and brought his arm back, squinting slightly to try and line up his throw. Unbeknownst to the young boy, his tongue stuck out just barely, further emphasizing his concentration. After a second more of focus, Ichigo let the rock fly, bringing his arm forward and flicking his wrist almost instinctively.

The rock bounced once and then sunk, barely making it any distance at all. As if to rub in Ichigo's failure, Zangetsu threw his rock. That stone bounced six times before sinking, approaching the other side of the river. Ichigo frowned, glancing at the rock that Zangetsu was once again holding out to him. Zangetsu raised an eyebrow at Ichigo's hesitation and made to take the rock back, but Ichigo quickly grabbed it.

With childish seriousness, Ichigo cocked his throwing arm again, looking ready to throw for all intents and purposes.

**"Wait a sec," **Zangetsu said, grabbing Ichigo's wrist. Ichigo instinctively flinched, first at the teenager's sudden movement and then at how cold the other boy's hand was. It barely felt like someone was grabbing him; instead, Zangetsu's hand felt like a cold sensation. When Zangetsu held tighter, however, Ichigo could definitely feel his grip.

"Hey!" Ichigo protested, beginning to pull his hand away.

**"Tch. Stop movin. If ya throw it like that yer not gonna get even one skip."**

Ichigo paused in his struggling as Zangetsu reached over with his other hand and began to adjust Ichigo's fingers. The young boy found himself automatically resisting Zangetsu's instructions, but the teenager eventually coerced Ichigo into changing his grip.

Zangetsu frowned, looked at Ichigo's form in a critical manner, and then nodded. **"Try it now, King."**

"I told you, I'm not a king," Ichigo mumbled, but he threw the stone nonetheless.

The throw didn't have as much power behind it as the previous one had; Ichigo was still getting used to the new grip. Ichigo's expression fell as the rock sunk immediately once again.

Zangetsu shrugged and handed Ichigo yet another rock, and then shifted the entire pile over to the younger boy. **"Here. I'll get s'more."**

The teenager wandered off, hands in his pockets, to look for more rocks that were suitable for throwing. Ichigo, meanwhile, grabbed another stone and stared at it with great intensity before deciding that it would do. He wrapped his hand around it and then spent a few precious seconds adjusting his own grip, struggling to remember how Zangetsu had done it. Eventually, he decided that it was as good as it was going to get, and pulled back his arm.

Remembering how weak his throw had been last time, he tried to throw it extra hard. Unfortunately, the rock slipped in his fingers as he was throwing it and it splashed rather pathetically into the water. Ichigo stared at the rapidly fading ripples, biting his lip and remembering the sight of Zangetsu's rock skipping off the golden waters five or six times.

Taking a deep breath, Ichigo picked up another rock and spent another few moments preparing himself. His eyes narrowed to just the river, and the young boy envisioned himself throwing the rock and seeing it bounce off the water.

Ichigo let the rock fly, and he let out a whoop of celebration when it skipped twice and then sank. He quickly grabbed another and threw that one as well, only to feel disappointment crash down onto him as it sank immediately upon hitting the water.

**"Ya gotta take yer time," **a familiar voice chided. Ichigo blinked and looked up, seeing Zangetsu standing over him. The teenager was carrying a sizable pile of rocks that he carefully dumped onto the ground, catching one before it could roll out of reach. Stunningly quickly, he whipped the rock at the river. It bounced three times and sank on the fourth, leaving a few bubbles that popped as the river continued flowing. **"If ya go too quickly, it ain't as fun and ya don't get the same result."**

Ichigo was frowning again, but he followed the older boy's advice and picked up another rock, taking his time. Zangetsu gave some advice and adjusted Ichigo's arm, showing him that he needed to have his arm farther out from his body.

Then Ichigo threw the rock, and he held his breath as it bounced once, twice, three times, four times-

And then sank.

But it was a victory, and Ichigo's frown had transformed instantaneously into a beaming grin of success.

"Did you see that?" He asked, turning to face Zangetsu. "It bounced four times! Four whole times! That was awesome!"

**"Nice job, King," **Zangetsu replied, grabbing a rock of his own. He lined up his throw and let loose, loosely crossing his arms as the stone skipped seven times, coming fairly close to the opposite bank. **"But let's see if ya can beat that."**

"You bet I can!" Ichigo declared, picking up a stone and throwing it as hard as he could. Zangetsu's lips quirked just barely as the rock didn't even bounce once and Ichigo's face fell. "Aw."

**"Ya went too fast again," **Zangetsu commented. **"Ya gotta take yer time."**

"I know, I know," Ichigo muttered. "Take my time, I got it. Just you wait! I'll get it to the opposite side!"

**"Go for it."**

Ichigo's tongue stuck out once more, demonstrating his concentration, before he threw another stone. His immediate smile showed his confidence in the throw and he automatically threw his hands in the air as the stone bounced six times.

"HA! I did it! I totally beat you!"

**"Mine bounced seven times."**

"Close enough," Ichigo decided, grabbing another rock. "I'll get seven real quick!"

Ichigo was so wrapped up in his task that he didn't notice the way that a ghost of a smile crossed Zangetsu's face for just a moment.

**"Good luck with that."**

"You'll see!"

The two threw rocks for hours, until the last golden light of the sun had long since disappeared over the horizon and Ichigo was complaining about how sore his right arm was.

**"Dontcha do karate?"** Zangetsu had asked at one point as he threw a stone and watched it skip over the water.

"Yeah, but I haven't done it in a while," Ichigo replied, his voice sullen and a little subdued.

**"That's no good," **Zangetsu stated, glancing down at the orange-haired boy. **"If ya do somethin, stick with it until ya reach whatever goal ya started it with, ya hear?"**

Ichigo threw him own rock and watched as it skipped three times and then sank. "Yeah, I guess."

Eventually, Ichigo lay down on the small grassy hill next to the river. Tired and distracted by the day's events, he didn't notice he was asleep until he had slipped into a peaceful dream, the first one he'd had in a while.

Zangetsu watched, still sitting by the bank of the river with one leg drawn up to his chest as he continued to throw rocks. The entire time, Ichigo had never asked about Zangetsu's strangely colored eyes, skin, or anything. Not even his blue tongue.

The hollow wondered, in the back of his mind, whether Ichigo had really noticed those things, or whether he had been too distracted. Either way, it didn't really matter.

Zangetsu threw a rock as hard as he could and watched with grim satisfaction as it flew across the water, eventually clattering onto the other side of the river and skidding a bit beyond that.

His gaze inadvertently went back to the young boy dozing a few meters away, his chest rising and falling in a gentle rhythm as a breeze stirred his bright orange hair.

**"I did a pretty shit job the first time 'round," **Zangetsu said quietly, feeling the very same breeze brush against him skin. **"But I ain't lettin ya go through that bullshit again, King."**

He was quiet for a few moments before he spoke again, his voice almost inaudible.

**"At least, not alone."**

A few minutes later, a small girl with spiky hair and tough eyes walked by, chatting with a friend. Seeing the young boy on the hill, she paused, and then gestured for her friend to go on without her. With a worried frown, the friend complied.

Zangetsu watched without a word as the girl with spiky hair gently shook Ichigo awake, her eyes wide and a little worried. Ichigo blinked and yawned, reaching up to rub his eyes.

After watching the two talk for a few seconds, Zangetsu turned away. He'd done all he needed to for the night. In a single step, he vanished, leaving nothing but a booming sound in his wake.

Neither Tatsuki Arisawa nor Ichigo Kurosaki noticed the noise, though Ichigo opened his mouth to ask where Zangetsu had gone, only to close it when he noticed that the boy wasn't there anymore.

There weren't even any rocks left sitting by the river, and Ichigo blinked, wondering if the entire thing had been a dream.

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><p><em>AN I have to wonder if any of you saw that twist coming at the end. Ah, well, it doesn't matter. This was just a cute scene that popped into my head a day ago and I needed to get it out._

_-RoR_

_Please review._


	2. Chapter 2

_So this happened. Typed it up in like two hours. I can't tell you how much I enjoy not being able to sleep. Really. It's fantastic. Utterly. Amazing._

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><p>A teenager with oddly bright orange hair staggered down a sidewalk, one hand held to his face and the other clutching his stomach. Blood dripped down from various cuts and bruises that decorated his person, and he limped with every step, favoring his right leg. A breeze pushed his hair back slightly, revealing the bruise that was just barely visible under his hand.<p>

After a few more steps, he paused, leaning against a nearby wall and temporarily taking his hand off his face. The black eye that decorated his face was clear, and blood ran from his nose. The injuries did nothing, however, to disguise the burning emotion in the boy's eyes.

Not even the bright sunlight could hide the darkness that pervaded his every step, and the rare person that passed by kept his distance from what was clearly a dangerous individual.

The boy took a deep breath and stepped into a nearby alley, keeping his hand braced against the wall. He seemed to find the rough brick a suitable brace, and he slowly eased into a leaning position, resting his back against the wall as he tipped his head back and let the small amount of sunlight that made it into the alley wash across his face. For just a fraction of a second, the darkness lifted, only to come back the instant a cloud covered the sun.

When that happened, the boy reopened his eyes and seemed to take a deep breath, almost bracing himself.

Pushing himself off the wall, he muttered, "Sorry, Mom." His voice was rough, though whether that was from injury or emotion was difficult to tell.

The boy began limping again, but only made it a few steps before he stopped once more. This time, however, he tensed and turned slowly, each movement full of a mix of malice and trepidation.

"Who's there, and what the hell do you want?" He asked, his tone threatening. On cue, three other boys stepped out of the shadows of the alley, clearly having been waiting for the chance to get the jump on the orange-haired boy.

"You've been causing trouble again, Ichigo. It's time you learned a lesson."

"Where'd you learn that line? It's very original."

The boy who had spoken scowled. "You're not in a position to insult, kid."

"Kid? You're barely older than I am."

"Right now, that's all that matters! It's time you paid for all the trouble you've caused to my crew and I'm going to be the one to dole out the punishment!"

Ichigo grinned, the expression razor-sharp and dangerous. "Bring it on."

One of the boys darted forward, his fist in motion. Ichigo ducked and lashed out with a punch of his own, catching the other boy in the stomach only to be hit in the side by another opponent that had come forward. He lost his balance and a kick from the first boy sent him skidding on the ground, biting his tongue to keep from crying out from the pain of aggravating the wounds he already had.

"What happened to that tough attitude, _Ichigo_?" The original boy asked, his tone nothing short of mocking. Ichigo spat out blood in the direction of his opponents.

"That? Oh, it's still here. I just wasn't sure if I needed it, because your attacks are nothing but weak to me."

"We'll see about that!"

As Ichigo tried to get to his feet, his vision blurring in and out, his reactions were slowed. Because of that, he was unable to dodge the next punch that hit him in the jaw, knocking him out cold.

The last thing he was aware of was the cool ground pressing up against his face, and then nothing.

A few meters away, a boy clad in orange pants and a black shirt sighed. His white hair waved gently in the breeze, making a sharp contrast to the hard look in his eyes. With one last glance at the soft white clouds dotting the sky, he turned and walked into the alley, past where the unconscious orange-haired boy lay unconscious.

"Hey, who the hell're you?" One of the boys asked, raising his fists. "You wanna fight or somethin?"

The white-haired boy smiled to himself, the shadows of the alley hiding his eyes from view. Even so, his pale skin practically glowed. He did not speak, but his answer was clear.

The three boys all raised their fists. The original speaker leaped forward, teeth bared. His fist came down.

With deceptive ease, the white-haired boy dodged the punch and grabbed its source, throwing the boy behind him with considerable force. The boy hit the wall hard enough to crack the brick and fell, groaning in pain.

The other two boys looked a lot less eager to launch attacks of their own, but in a rapid, silent conversation they decided to attack at the same time from two different directions.

In theory, it was a solid plan. In practice, it was doomed.

The moment the two boys split up and began to approach the other teenager, the white-haired boy darted forward, wrapped his hand around the nearest boy's wrist, and bodily threw him into the other, knocking both of his opponents down hard. They rolled, with one hitting the wall before coming to a stop. The other was out cold, his chest rising and falling to indicate that he was still breathing.

It took them a minute, but the two boys that were still conscious managed to stagger to their feet.

"F-freak," one of them gasped, wiping blood off his face as he stared at the white-haired boy.

"Some kinda monster," the other agreed, panting and occasionally wincing.

The two froze upon hearing a sound coming from their attacker. They could see his shoulders shaking, and his lips slowly stretched into a parody of a smile. After a few moments, the two boys realized that he was laughing.

It wasn't loud, but the noise was chilling. There was something off about it, something that was distinctly _wrong_ and had the boys wishing that they knew what they'd gotten into.

After half a minute, the laughter died to nothing, and the white-haired boy straightened, his hair still covering his eyes. He still did not speak.

He didn't have to.

"Who—who the hell are you?" One of the boys asked, his eyes wide. "Just who the hell are you?"

The white-haired boy attacked before the other boy could say anything, his fist connecting with the other's stomach and instantly knocking the target out cold. The boy collapsed, the air leaving him in a gasp. As he fell, the white-haired boy turned and hit the other boy with an uppercut that lifted him off the ground.

As the last boy crumpled to the ground, the white-haired boy's eyes finally came into view. The small amount of light in the alley reflected off their burning gold irises.

The white-haired boy stood to his full height and took a few moments to drag the three boys out of sight of the road and put them in positions against the wall. The boys' injuries were not serious, so the white-haired boy saw no need to alert anyone that the confrontation had taken place at all.

The smile dropped from his face as he turned to look at the orange-haired boy, who was still unconscious. With little ceremony, the white-haired boy picked him up and threw him over one shoulder. With a sound like a miniature sonic boom, the white-haired boy disappeared.

He reappeared some distance away, underneath a bridge by a very particular river. With surprising gentleness that contrasted heavily with his earlier behavior, the white-haired boy set the boy he had been carrying on the ground, putting him in a comfortable position. The white-haired boy kneeled over him and held out one hand, a green-blue energy swirling around it. The severity of the orange-haired boy's injuries lessened, until they were nothing more than minor scrapes and bruises.

Once that was done, the white-haired boy sat down a few meters away from the unconscious boy and stared across the river, his black and gold eyes occasionally flicking down to check on the boy he had saved.

It was a little under an hour later when the orange-haired boy finally stirred. The entire time, the white-haired boy had not moved, had not shifted a single muscle. At the sound of groaning, however, he tensed and looked to where the other boy was slowly getting up.

"My head," the boy named Ichigo muttered, blinking the spots from his eyes. His head pounded, but it was nothing in comparison to how he could remember it being. "What happened? Did I get knocked out? Damn, how pathetic . . ."

Something registered with Ichigo's sixth sense and he turned his head quickly.

**"I'm surprised ya didn't give yerself whiplash right there," **a soft voice commented, its double tones familiar to Ichigo.

"I know you," Ichigo said, his eyes going wide as he searched for the memories. This wasn't some random stranger, Ichigo could see that much for sure. He looked around again, taking in his surroundings and comparing them to the ones he remembered. "Did you bring me here?"

**"Yeah."**

The white-haired boy shifted, and Ichigo's eyes widened as the other boy threw a rock at the water. Instead of sinking immediately, however, it bounced. Once, twice, thrice, until it sank on the fourth. The familiar sight was enough to remind Ichigo, and one of his hands clenched into a fist out of sheer reflex.

"You're Zangetsu."

The other boy grinned, his oddly colored eyes staring straight up at the bottom of the bridge.

**"Guilty as charged, I guess."** His gaze slid over to where Ichigo was sitting, and his grin turned crooked. **"It's been a while."**

"A while?" Ichigo stood, his expression hostile even as he staggered a step before regaining his balance. "It's been years!"

Zangetsu's smile dropped and a far darker expression replaced it for just an instant. **"Yeah. I've had things I needed ta do."**

Ichigo's countenance didn't change. "I thought I imagined you! You just disappeared!"

**"Sorry 'bout that. I had somewhere to be, and ya looked like ya were doin fine with that girl."**

"Tatsuki?"

**"Probably."**

Ichigo's other hand balled into a fist. "You're an asshole," he growled. One of Zangetsu's eyebrows rose.

**"No need ta be hasty. Yer still recoverin from yer other fight."**

"Shut up!"

Ichigo made to punch Zangetsu, but the white-haired boy was on his feet in a flash. In an instant, Ichigo was on the ground, clutching his ribs and groaning as Zangetsu regarded him oddly from above.

**"Why'd ya do that?"**

Ichigo muttered something.

**"I said, why'd ya do that?"**

Ichigo sighed. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm a little bit frustrated." He scowled. "Mainly because some random guy that I thought I'd just dreamed about or something showed up out of nowhere like he hadn't been gone for years."

Ichigo shifted into a sitting position, wincing again at the pain of his injuries. He looked Zangetsu in the eye, not even bothering to comment on his strange appearance, Just like the previous time the two had met, Ichigo either didn't notice or didn't care about Zangetsu's appearance.

"I never did thank you for what you did for me," he said, his voice abnormally subdued. "I was in a bad place, and if you hadn't come along . . ." His voice trailed away, but the meaning was obvious.

**"No need ta be so dramatic," **Zangetsu replied. **"Ya woulda figured somethin out on yer own, trust me."**

Ichigo scowled. "I should've known you wouldn't accept that."

**"Think what ya like," **Zangetsu responded, reaching down a hand. Ichigo took it, and Zangetsu hauled him to his feet. Ichigo managed to stop himself from reacting at the obvious strength that Zangetsu possessed; the white-haired boy had pulled him up with no effort at all. **"So, did ya ever reach the other side?"**

"Huh?"

Zangetsu gestured to the river with his thumb, and comprehension dawned on Ichigo's expression, followed immediately by a grin. "You bet I did."

**"Prove it," **Zangetsu said, tossing a rock to Ichigo. The orange-haired boy caught it easily and walked up to the water's edge, his eyes narrowing as he began to focus. After a few seconds of minute adjustments, he let the stone fly.

It bounced across the water numerous times until, with a barely audible clatter, it made it to the opposite bank with little distance to spare. Ichigo turned, triumphant, and his smile only widened when he saw the matching grin on Zangetsu's face.

**"Well, how 'bout that," **Zangetsu said, crossing his arms. **"Ya actually managed ta do it."**

"I've been getting stronger."

**"Clearly."**

Zangetsu thought for a moment, staring out at the glittering water of the river. **"Tell ya what. I'll offer ya a deal."**

"A deal?"

**"Yeah. It's pretty simple, and judgin from how ya got yer ass handed ta ya in that last fight, yer gonna want ta take it."**

"What is it?" There was wariness in Ichigo's words, but he seemed to be willing to listen.

**"In exchange for me teachin ya how ta fight, ya don't tell anyone about me."**

Ichigo blinked. "Why don't you want anyone to know?"

Zangetsu grinned. **"Let's just say that I don't like ta be well known. My appearance has gotten me into lotsa trouble in the past, ya know?"**

Ichigo nodded, swallowing as he immediately thought of his own hair and the numerous thugs that had targeted him because of it. "Yeah."

**"So, what're ya gonna say?"**

"What's the catch?"

**"I guess ya are smarter than I thought," **Zangetsu said, frowning for a second. **"Ah, well, that's a good thing. The catch is that ya gotta be here at this same time every day, got it?"**

Ichigo thought about the offer for a few moments, taking that time to look out over the water himself. After taking a deep breath, he nodded.

"Yeah, I'll do it."

Zangetsu's grin returned as though it had never left. **"Good. You've got the desire ta get stronger. I'd be worried if ya didn't have it."**

Ichigo clenched one of his hands into fists and stared down at it, his expression focused. "I need to get stronger. If I don't, I can't protect Karin and Yuzu, and I'll never be able to face my dad again. And my mom . . . I won't be able to face her either."

Zangetsu uncrossed his arms, letting them dangle at his sides. **"Understandable, kid. Now, let's see if ya can even put a scratch on me."**

Ichigo's grin turned dangerous. "Just watch me!"

By the end of the session, Ichigo was panting, far more bruised than he had been previously. He could barely move, but his strength was rapidly returning. Zangetsu was barely breathing any more quickly than usual, and just as he had expected, Ichigo had barely been able to touch him, let alone land a solid hit.

Zangetsu was pleased to note that Ichigo's form wasn't bad. The work he had done while trying and succeeding in beating Tatsuki had paid off, and Ichigo was now a formidable fighter. What he was missing was a real sixth fighting sense, one that would allow him to react to unpredictable fighting situations and take charge of any confrontation he found himself in.

He needed confidence.

Zangetsu glanced down at the orange-haired boy and let out a deep breath, glancing up as he did so.

**"Man, that guy's got a weird hat."**

Ichigo followed where Zangetsu was looking, turning his head slightly so that he could see. At first, he didn't see anything, but then he noticed the man walking across the street and the rather obnoxious hat he wore. He grinned tiredly.

"Yeah. Looks weird, doesn't it?"

Zangetsu made a noise of agreement and Ichigo looked away, missing the moment when the man in the hat wavered and faded in and out of view, his ghostly form difficult to see in the sunlight.

Zangetsu sighed. No doubt, Ichigo knew that he was able to see ghosts. At this point, he probably still had a little difficulty telling the living from the dead, but Zangetsu knew that he would figure out something fairly quickly.

**"Time ta go," **he said, holding out his hand to Ichigo. The exhausted boy regarded it for a few moments before he reached up and took it, allowing himself to be hauled to his feet. **"See ya tomorrow."**

"Yeah," Ichigo said, glancing down at his shirt and brushing off some of the dust that had accumulated it. When he glanced up, Zangetsu was already gone.

* * *

><p><em>AN Heh, yeah. So this is like a Zangetsu time-travel __story. I didn't see that one coming until I wrote that last chapter, really._

**_shinyshadowklefki: _**_Maybe, but that might take over a year, and I don't know how I'll feel about this story at that point. Though it does sound interesting._

_If I do upload more chapters to this at any point, it will be more oneshot glimpses like this. Zangetsu won't be doing much more than talking with and teaching Ichigo at random points._

_Adios,_

_-RoR_


	3. Chapter 3

_Huh. Apparently you guys like this, so I'll continue. Don't expect further updates to come as quickly as these, since I really need to focus on the story I have going right now if I want to finish it any time soon._

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><p>Zangetsu stood under the bridge by the river he had come to know so well. That day, the sky was filled with clouds, and there was no sunset to turn the water of the river into its brilliant golden colors. His hair was even longer than it had been previously, stretching down to his neck and hanging over his eyes. He still wore his typical orange pants and black shirt, and his skin had grown no darker.<p>

He wondered if Ichigo was mad at him. He'd been gone for an entire year, after all, without giving Ichigo any warning.

Zangetsu scowled. It wasn't _his_ fault that Kisuke Urahara had taken an express interest in talking to him. It had taken the hollow the better part of the year to convince Kisuke that he knew what he was doing, he wasn't just going to go devour a bunch of souls, and that he needed to be let out or Kisuke's plans for Ichigo would be seriously screwed up.

That statement had led to a whole new line of questioning, and Zangetsu had ended up telling Kisuke everything that had happened. By the end of it, the usually jovial shopkeeper had looked oddly withdrawn. After that, he had let Zangetsu go, offering his shop as a place that Zangetsu could stay. Since the Zanpakutō rarely needed sleep if at all, he took the invitation in stride and only used it when it was absolutely necessary.

Despite the gray skies, Zangetsu could tell when the sun drifted below the horizon. Night fell all too quickly, and Zangetsu took a moment to wonder when Ichigo had stopped coming to the bridge. It had probably taken the orange-haired teen less than a month to realize that Zangetsu was not coming back any time soon.

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. At least he had trained Ichigo for a decent amount of time; the orange-haired boy would be a formidable opponent to any other teenager who dared to cross his path. Even an adult would have a difficult time, and Ichigo would beat an adult if that person had little combat training.

Zangetsu froze. He could sense the Reiatsu of everyone in town, and one that he had become so accustomed to that he normally ignored it had suddenly flared up. The roar of a hollow cut through the night, only to abruptly die away. Zangetsu made the connection in his head immediately and leapt to his feet. In an instant, he vanished with a booming noise.

When he reappeared, it was by one of the warehouses in the warehouse district. Smoke drifted up from one of the buildings and Zangetsu could hear the distinct sounds of fighting. A distinctly familiar feminine voice cut through the air, yelling, "Come on, Ichigo! Aim for the mask!"

"I _am _aiming for the mask, Rukia!"

Another hollow's roar echoed through the night and Zangetsu clenched his hands into fists. His inactivity had been eating at him ever since he had come to Karakura Town, and he itched to summon his blades and eviscerate the first hollow he could find.

Training Ichigo was one thing, but the guy simply wasn't at the skill level that Zangetsu could really appreciate. He would beat any person who challenged him, but no doubt his sword skills were abysmal. Of course, it would be hard to explain to him how Zangetsu knew about the world of the Shinigami. Zangetsu was surprised that Ichigo hadn't realized he wasn't a living person; although, when Zangetsu hung around with Ichigo, he typically took a gigai from Kisuke. Usually without the shopkeeper knowing it.

Now that he thought about it, that was probably part of the reason that Kisuke was slightly angry with him, even after Zangetsu had explained everything. Something about "just asking". Like Kisuke was known for "just asking" for things.

And "just asking" wasn't as fun as stealing. Though Zangetsu did end up actually paying for the gigai in the end with some money he had gotten during his free time.

Zangetsu wasn't in a gigai now; he hadn't expected Ichigo to show up to their meeting spot, and therefore hadn't figured that it was necessary. Technically, he had been right.

"Ichigo, duck!"

A familiar orange-haired teen suddenly crashed through a nearby warehouse in an explosion of dust, leaving a large hole in the wall and a sizeable crater in the ground. He held an oversized Zanpakutō in one hand and was clothed in a hakama, the black cloth ripped and torn in a few places. Blood trickled out of the corners of his mouth, but as Ichigo got up he wiped the blood away with the back of his hand.

Zangetsu winced slightly upon seeing the blade in Ichigo's hands. It just looked and felt so _wrong_. Even the cleaver blade had been better than the monstrosity Ichigo currently held.

At least Aizen wasn't watching at the moment; Zangetsu had taken pains to make sure that the rogue Shinigami would have extreme difficulty with monitoring Karakura Town in the future. Of course, the hollow had managed to do so in a way that Aizen wouldn't be able to pinpoint the reason behind that difficulty; Zangetsu knew Aizen almost better than Aizen knew himself, after all.

Ichigo hadn't noticed Zangetsu; he was too wrapped up with fighting the hollow that had just blasted through the remains of the warehouse wall. It was big, ugly, and more powerful than the majority of hollows that came from Hueco Mundo.

Zangetsu frowned; most of the Reiatsu he sensed wasn't coming from Ichigo or the hollow he was fighting. There was another source of hollow Reiatsu, coming up fast.

"Ichigo, look out!"

Rukia was climbing out of the warehouse, clearly in a gigai. Already, her Reiatsu signature was next to nothing, but she was skilled enough to sense the hollow coming up quickly by Ichigo.

It was going too fast to be running; it had to be flying. Zangetsu looked up to see a kind of bird hollow soaring through the sky, its talons aimed directly for Ichigo. The substitute Shinigami would have no time to react to the threat and with a grin Zangetsu summoned his blades, happy that the circumstances had made his decision so easy. The comforting cleaver blade materialized in Zangetsu's right hand, followed immediately by an oversized trench knife in his left with the blade extending to form a kind of guard over the grip. The blades were sheer white, with the cleaver blade having a hollowed-out portion running its length on the blade.

Zangetsu was moving in an instant. His swords flashed in the sunlight, bisecting the flying hollow before it even realized that it had been attacked. It let out a pathetic dying screech as it disintegrated into Reishi. Zangetsu landed lightly, his feet barely making a sound. He kept his Reiatsu neatly suppressed so that neither Rukia nor Ichigo would be able to tell just how powerful he was. Plus, Zangetsu didn't particularly feel like crushing the warehouse district flat on accident.

He ducked, feeling rather than seeing the hollow's arm swipe over his head. Zangetsu counterattacked immediately, entirely on instinct, and cut the offending arm off in a single swipe. It crashed to the ground, already disintegrating, and the hollow let out a pained roar.

Zangetsu saw Ichigo staring at him out of the corner of his eye. The substitute Shinigami looked to be in shock, but Zangetsu didn't feel like explaining himself in the middle of a fight.

The hollow attacked again, trying to punch Zangetsu and completely ignoring Ichigo. The Zanpakutō spirit grinned, crossing his blades and stopping the fist in its tracks. With a grunt, Zangetsu pushed forward, knocking the hollow off balance. He then finished the movement by slashing the hollow across the middle and cutting it clean in half. It fell and disappeared, its Reiatsu fading with it.

Zangetsu sheathed his blades, the black cloth-like material automatically wrapping them and fixing them to his back and waist. He let out a deep breath, running one hand through his hair before he turned to look at Ichigo.

**"Hey. Long time no see."**

Ichigo was speechless, though he tried to form words anyway.

"You—it—you—what?"

"Who are you?" Rukia demanded, landing in front of Ichigo and looking as intimidating as her yellow sundress and rather short stature would allow. Zangetsu shrugged, the very picture of nonchalance.

**"No one important, really."**

Rukia's eyes narrowed. "Who are you?" She repeated. Zangetsu raised his hands in a defensive gesture.

**"No need to get hostile. I'm here to help. Ask Ichigo; we've talked before, haven't we? I mean, more than talked, but that ain't important."**

Rukia glanced towards Ichigo, who by this point had mostly pulled himself together.

"Well, Ichigo?"

"Y—yeah, I've met him. He used to train me to fight, though he's been gone for a while now."

Zangetsu ignored the accusing tone in Ichigo's voice. It wasn't _his_ fault that Kisuke Urahara was too curious for anyone's good.

"Are you a Shinigami?" Rukia asked, crossing her arms. Zangetsu shrugged.

**"Kind of."**

It wasn't a lie. He was _part_ of a Shinigami, and he was essentially the embodiment of Ichigo's Shinigami abilities, but that wasn't something that needed to be mentioned.

Rukia frowned.

**"Relax. I ain't here ta hurt ya; I said it before, and I'll say it again: I'm here ta help. Ichigo, yer absolutely terrible with that oversized sword of yers. I'm surprised ya didn't decapitate yerself with it while ya fought."**

"I'm not that bad!" Ichigo said, scowling.

**"Yes, ya are. I'll have ta train ya with that thing if ya don't want to stab yerself in the foot with it."**

"I have been training Ichigo on my own," Rukia said, her expression more than a little wary and definitely full of suspicion. "There is no need for you to interfere in our matters."

Zangetsu raised one eyebrow. In an instant, he had unsheathed his cleaver blade and whipped it at Ichigo. The sharp edge stopped a hairsbreadth away from Ichigo's head, and the swing had carried enough force to create a small breeze that blew past Ichigo when Zangetsu stopped his swing. Neither Rukia nor Ichigo reacted until after Zangetsu completed the motion.

**"As I was sayin," **Zangetsu drawled, pulling his sword back and enjoying the shock on Ichigo's face more than he should have. **"He's gonna get killed if he gets inta a bad situation. Hell, he nearly died five minutes ago."**

"I would've figured something out!"

**"Oh shut up. No, ya wouldn't've. Ya were dead meat, 'specially cause yer Shinigami friend ain't gonna be able ta help ya."**

Rukia stiffened and Zangetsu scoffed.

**"What? Ya thought I wouldn't notice the way yer Reiatsu is barely there? C'mon, I ain't stupid. It's obvious yer not recoverin yer powers the way ya want ta get 'em back."**

"That is none of your concern," Rukia said, her tone stiff.

**"Whatever. Just warnin ya."**

The trio lapsed into silence for all of five seconds, until Ichigo broke the impasse.

"So, when were you going to tell me that you knew about all of this?" Ichigo waved a hand around at the destruction, clearly referring to the world pertaining to the Shinigami. "And is that why you wanted to train me? And if you aren't a Shinigami, then what the hell are you and why are you so intent on watching me? Also, where the hell have you _been_ the past year?"

**"Whoa, too many questions."**

Ichigo's flat glare and accompanying scowl made it clear that he wanted all of those questions answered. With a roll of his eyes, Zangetsu complied.

**"Fine, fine. I wasn't gonna tell ya until ya called me out on bein dead."**

"How was I supposed to tell?"

**"Ya woulda noticed eventually. And it ain't because I know about the afterlife that I wanted ta train ya; that was just 'cause I could."**

"Out of the goodness of your heart?" Ichigo asked, his tone more than slightly sarcastic. Zangetsu ignored the question.

**"I already said I ain't a Shinigami, and what I am ain't all that important. Before ya get all worried, I ain't a hollow either."**

Rukia looked decidedly irritated with Zangetsu's vague answers, though she held her tongue.

**"As ta where I've been the past year, I've been travelin. There's some things I had ta check out in some far away cities without warnin so I couldn't tell ya."**

It was a flimsy lie, but neither Ichigo nor Rukia seemed eager to press. Ichigo didn't want to press mostly because he respected Zangetsu too much for that; Rukia was simply following Ichigo's lead, since she had no real grasp on the situation and had only the first impressions she had gotten from Zangetsu to make judgments. As Rukia knew, first impressions were not always correct, despite how black-and-white Zangetsu's personality seemed. That, however, brought Rukia back to an earlier topic of discussion.

"Why do you need to train Ichigo with a sword?"

Zangetsu glanced at Rukia, one eyebrow steadily climbing.

**"'Cause he sucks."**

"I'm training him."

**"Then we can both train 'im. Problem solved."**

"He doesn't need two trainers."

**"Then he can train with me. It ain't that hard."**

"I rather think that he will be training with me."

**"You wanna bet, shorty?"**

Zangetsu had made many mistakes during his life. Most of the time, he did not regret them in the slightest. Now, however, he sorely regretted using the nickname he had used for Hiyori on Rukia.

**"Ow, dammit!"** Zangetsu held his shin, wincing, as Rukia turned away and crossed her arms, clearly miffed. She had kicked him so fast that Zangetsu had no time to react; Shinigami powers or not, Rukia was a force to be reckoned with. Zangetsu mentally cursed himself for not remembering that. While Rukia normally was calm and levelheaded, she had her moments.

Those moments tended to be painful for those involved.

"Will you two quit talking like I'm not here?" Ichigo said, clearly irritated. "Look, I'll just train with both of you. I'm sure you two can figure something out."

Zangetsu and Rukia exchanged a look, and then Zangetsu told Ichigo to go explore the warehouses.

**"I gotta talk ta the Shinigami," **Zangetsu said. Ichigo rolled his eyes and left, not liking the way that Zangetsu and Rukia were smiling and looking in his direction as they spoke at all.

An hour or so later, Ichigo and Zangetsu were walking home. Rukia had claimed that she had to go meet with someone. Zangetsu knew that the person was Kisuke, but he also knew that Kisuke would keep his mouth shut. The shopkeeper liked his secrets just as much as Zangetsu did, if not more so. Rukia wouldn't get anything out of the enigmatic scientist.

"How long?"

Ichigo's voice was quiet; he was back in his body, and at some point Zangetsu had gone and gotten a gigai from the Kisuke's shop. Since he had figured out how to use both Shunpo and Sonido in the gigai, getting back to the warehouses quickly had been no trouble.

**"How long for what?"**

"How long have you been—how long have you _known_ about Shinigami and hollows?"

Zangetsu sighed, tilting his head back and looking at the sky. The pair was walking by the river they had grown to use as a meeting place, and the water, while not illuminated by the sunset due to the cloudy weather and since it was night, was still calming to listen to and watch. The streetlights offered comforting circles of light and cast strange shadows over the area.

The Zanpakutō wasn't sure what to say. If he said too long, then Ichigo would be more than a little suspicious. If he said too little, then Ichigo would be suspicious anyway. Eventually, Zangetsu decided on his usual strategy of "say the truth and move on". It had worked before, and it should work again. At least, that's what the hollow thought.

**"Most of my life. One of the guys I used ta work for taught me 'bout it."**

Well, his strategy was resembled something more like "say a half-truth and move on".

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Zangetsu smirked, glancing at Ichigo out of the corner of his eye.

**"Ya wouldn't've believed me. Hell, ya probably didn't believe that Shinigami chick when she first told ya."**

"Her name's Rukia."

**"Either way, I had no reason to. It wouldn't've done ya any favors and ya had enough on yer plate already."**

"Yeah, because you were trying to kill me during those training sessions."

**"Ya only had ta go ta the hospital once."**

"Because you _broke both of my legs_!"

**"Ya recovered fast."**

"I'm still suspicious of that!"

Zangetsu raised one eyebrow, bringing his gaze back down to earth and looking at Ichigo.

**"What?"**

"I shouldn't have healed that quickly. It makes no sense!"

**"Maybe it's 'cause ya have a lot of Reiatsu."**

Ichigo's expression showed just how much he believed that—or how little—but the substitute Shinigami made no further comment.

The two walked in silence, the contrast between them making the sight all the more unusual.

During that time, Zangetsu reflected on how Rukia had been looking at him the entire time during their talk about Ichigo's training. She had clearly noted the resemblance between the two—despite the odd coloring of Zangetsu's features—and though she didn't ask any questions Zangetsu could tell that she had been thinking about that the entire time.

And then the petite Shinigami had asked him about the strange coloring of his eyes, skin, hair, and tongue, and Zangetsu had improvised some answer about how his family had been able to transform their features in order to hide, much like the Shihōin family was capable of transforming into cats.

Rukia hadn't bought it, but it was enough to tide her over for the moment. She would likely bring both of the matters up with Kisuke; with luck, the shopkeeper would lie more effectively than Zangetsu. The sword spirit would have to stop by the shop that night in order to match his story to whatever Kisuke said. Otherwise, it would all fall apart.

Zangetsu snuck one last look at Ichigo. Hopefully, the orange-haired boy would get his act together quickly; Zangetsu had no idea how much longer his lies would hold up, especially since he couldn't find suitable excuses to explain his presence. Even with Kisuke's help, Zangetu's circumstances only afforded him so much time.

When Ichigo got home, he turned to ask Zangetsu if he wanted to come in, but the older boy was already gone. Ichigo shook his head, muttering that he should have been used to Zangetsu's sudden disappearances at that point.

Too distracted by his thoughts, Ichigo never even saw his dad's foot coming.

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><p><em>AN So yeah. I have no idea when the next update will be coming out, but it will probably be more than two weeks at least._

_There's no reviews that really need to have questions answered._

_This story is not going to be about action. It's just a series of Ichigo/Zangetsu (hollow) __one shots that are all based around Zangetsu traveling back in time to help Ichigo._

_-RoR_

**_Please Review._**


	4. Chapter 4

This is the last chapter I have written for this, but since I'll be busy for the next few weeks with little free time I figured I might as well put this up now. Enjoy, review, whatever. Think of it as compensation for me not being able to post another chapter for _Ichigo, Meet Ichigo_ for a while.

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><p>PART 4<p>

Zangetsu woke up in a flash, his heart pounding in his ears and his blood roaring through his veins. Sweat covered his body and chills wracked his muscles so that he shivered uncontrollably for a moment. His mind was locked, replaying the nightmare over and over and over and over until the hollow felt that he could remember every excruciating detail at any moment at any time. He couldn't even think straight for a few seconds, his mind in chaos, but he still had enough thought to reign in his Reiatsu before anyone realized what had happened.

Zangetsu's hollow instincts were on the verge of overwhelming him but he pushed them back, locked them away in his mind once more as he slowly, slowly, _agonizingly_ slowly pulled himself back from the brink.

It took the hollow ten minutes to calm down to the point when he could breathe normally. He pushed back his hair—now a slightly stiff with sweat—and let out a deep breath, ignoring how shaky it sounded. The blankets that Kisuke had given Zangetsu were hopelessly tangled and scattered, so the hollow didn't even bother to try and straighten them out. Instead, he rolled onto his hands and knees and then pushed himself to his feet, ignoring the way the world spun for a moment as he stood. He stretched and heard his back crack multiple times as he did so, and then he blinked the remainder of the sleep out of his eyes.

The room was dark as Zangetsu walked out of it, and he took pains to make sure that he slid the doors open and closed as quietly as possible; thanks to his incredible control over his Reiatsu, he didn't have to worry about being sensed.

He was halfway through the candy shop when the clapping started. Zangetsu froze, a split second away from leaving his gigai and beheading whoever had thought it was smart to take him by surprise, but the other person revealed their Reiatsu and Zangetsu relaxed, if only slightly.

"My, my. That was impressive. You almost made it out of my shop before my sensors caught you. Where did you learn to move like that, if you don't mind me asking?"

**"Yoruichi."**

Zangetsu's tone was flat and invited no further discussion on the topic. Taking the hint, Kisuke let it drop.

"All right. Would you care to tell me what you are doing awake at this hour?" He was quiet for a moment, most likely checking the time. "It's one in the morning, after all. You may be a hollow, but from what I've seen your sleeping habits aren't quite _that_ strange."

Zangetsu regarded Kisuke with a neutral expression, inwardly debating whether it would be worth it to tell the shopkeeper why he was awake. While Kisuke was devious and often untrustworthy to those he was curious about, Zangetsu had discovered that he was extremely reliable and often his eccentric or overbearing emotions were faked.

Convincingly faked, but faked all the same.

After a minute, he sighed. It wouldn't hurt to tell the shopkeeper, and Kisuke would no doubt figure it out anyway. It wasn't as though the information was compromising in any way.

The two sat down in a different room, making sure to stay relatively quiet since the other occupants of the shop were likely still asleep.

"So, what seems to be the problem?" Kisuke asked, his usual fan nowhere in sight.

**"You'll find it somewhat ironic," **Zangetsu replied, picking at his nails. **"But every now and then I have nightmares."**

"Nightmares?"

**"Yeah. Flashbacks, I guess. It ain't fun."**

'No, it doesn't sound like it would be. May I inquire as to what the nightmares are about specifically?"

**"Everyone's deaths," **Zangetsu replied simply. **"And the times when King wasn't strong enough ta save 'em." **He hesitated only slightly before his next words. **"The times when Ichigo broke."**

Kisuke's expression darkened, and a hidden pain flashed in his eyes. "I see."

**"Tch, don't look like that. I ain't that delicate and I don't want yer pity."**

"It's not pity. Are the nightmares why you typically avoid sleeping?"

**"That, and I just don't need ta sleep much."**

"Hm. Well, I have some medicines that can aid your sleeping, if you would want to sleep more peacefully."

Zangetsu snorted. **"I'll pass, but thanks for the offer. I can handle this on my own."**

Kisuke regarded Zangetsu quietly for a moment, a debate clearly going on in his mind before he spoke. "It's your decision."

**"Yeah," **Zangetsu said as he stood up, **"it is. I'm gonna go out; but first, I gotta tell ya somethin."**

The shopkeeper's eyes narrowed as Zangetsu turned back to face him, the hollow's expression abnormally grave.

**"Look, Kisuke."**

The shopkeeper looked straight into the hollow's eyes, catching the serious tone in Zangetsu's voice and realizing that what the Zanpakutō spirit said next would undoubtedly be important, possibly even advice that came from his experiences in the future.

**"If yer gonna do the Shattered Shaft—which ya should—give Ichigo a damn Asauchi. I know ya have some in the back, so don't try ta play innocent. And I know that the creator of Asauchi was okay with ya takin 'em, but not okay with 'em never bein used."** Zangetsu's tone became slightly more accusing.** "Ya didn't leave Soul Society unprepared for somethin like this."** Zangetsu closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he let it out slowly. **"Not doin it just causes more problems later."**

"I see," Kisuke said, his tone quiet as he pulled down his hat to further shade his eyes. He appeared to be missing his fan while curiously unwilling to actually take it out. There was guilt in his tone and in his posture, as though he had already thought of the risks of that course of action time and time again. "I will keep that in mind."

**"If ya don't do it," **Zangetsu continued, looking away and clenching his hands into fists, **"I'll gut ya."**

His lack of eye contact did not make the words any less threatening, and Kisuke knew that the Zanpakutō was more than capable of carrying out his threat, especially after all that he had told Kisuke.

"I understand."

**"Good."**

Zangetsu walked away, heading out of the shop as Kisuke watched his retreating form. The hollow was in a gigai, and despite the fact that his Reiatsu was almost completely undetectable, his words still carried all the threat and menace they would have had if Zangetsu was in soul form and had held his blades under Kisuke's chin.

The shopkeeper closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and stood to go back to the projects he had been working on before his sensors reacted to Zangetsu's movement.

Meanwhile, Zangetsu walked through Karakura Town, his hands in his pockets and his eyes shadowed by his white hair. He didn't pay attention to the brilliant moon overhead, nor the stars that were just as bright that dotted the night sky. His attention was focused down, at his feet, as he kicked a pebble across the sidewalk he was walking on. Every now and then he passed under a streetlight, but the changes in lighting did not affect his pace, though at a very particular streetlight he stopped and turned, looking down the alley that it partially illuminated.

After a moment of hesitation, Zangetsu walked on, keeping his back to the alley.

The alley was where Karin and Yuzu had met their end, and Zangetsu couldn't bear to look there because his emotions went haywire, and he hated it when they did that.

He hunched his shoulders and walked slightly faster, no real destination in mind. The night was chilly, but the hollow was barely affected by the cold and he kept his eyes down, hiding their odd colors from the world, even though there was no one outside to see him.

Zangetsu, after a few more minutes of walking, suddenly froze upon seeing where he had ended up.

**"Dammit," **he muttered. **"I was tryin not ta come here."**

A breeze drifted through the air of the graveyard, stirring up small motes of dust and rustling Zangetsu's hair. The hollow ignored that, for the first time that night allowing the moon to shine directly on his golden irises. He let out a deep breath, staring down at Masaki Kurosaki's grave.

His voice was something close to wistful when he next spoke. **"You started it all, didn't ya? I gotta wonder if you'll be proud of what Ichigo'll become." **Zangetsu paused to reconsider his words. **"I guess that won't happen now, but that's fine."**

As the hollow expected, Masaki's grave offered no response. The night was oddly quiet, not even any wildlife moving around in the nearby area to make noise. The oddness of the situation hit Zangetsu almost immediately and he spun around, ready in an instant to sever the connection between his soul and the gigai he occupied. Thanks to some of the physical training he had done with Ichigo in the later years of their alliance (friendship?), Zangetsu knew how to handle himself perfectly well in a gigai and he was capable of exiting it in an instant without outside means.

The moonlight turned the world a shining silver but only increased the numerous shadows that the landscape created; Zangetsu's eyes probed the dark as he reached out his sixth Reiatsu sense, searching for anyone or anything that would be stupid enough to challenge him.

Almost immediately, Zangetsu picked up on the Reiatsu signatures of several hollows. At the same time, those hollows' roars pierced the night air.

No doubt, Ichigo would be forced to take care of the hollows by Rukia as the resident "substitute Shinigami". Since Zangetsu was already awake, he figured he might as well let Ichigo get some semblance of his normal sleeping habits.

A burst of light, a booming noise, and the glint of moonlight on metal and the hollows' roars abruptly ceased; the sounds of heavy objects hitting the ground disrupted the quiet that had permeated the night, only for the silence and stillness to return moments later. For the majority of the people in Karakura Town, the tranquility had never left.

After Zangetsu beheaded the latest hollow, he sheathed his blades and turned to face the Shinigami that had been watching him for the past few minutes.

**"Rukia Kuchiki," **he said, his tone flat as he regarded the petite Shinigami. **"What brings ya here?"**

"I wanted to talk."

**"We already talked."**

"I'm not here about Ichigo's training."

**"Then why are ya here?"**

"Ichigo may not be suspicious of you, but I certainly am. Ichigo can't sense your Reiatsu, but I picked up on it yesterday. Ichigo hasn't realized it, but I certainly can. You have the Reiatsu of a hollow."

Every time the petite Shinigami listed off something about Zangetsu that didn't add up, she put up a finger. The repetition got on Zangetsu's nerves, but he let the Shinigami have her moment.

He kept his expression utterly unimpressed even though the gears in his mind were turning to find some way out to escape the direction the conversation was headed.

**"Were ya goin somewhere with this?"**

"You cannot be trusted."

**"That's harsh. I haven't done anythin ta harm ya; hell, I've done nothin but help."**

"I would rather not take the chance."

**"Well, that sucks."**

Rukia's eyes narrowed. "And why is that?"

**"'Cause I'm here ta stay, and nothin ya could do can stop me."**

The petite Shinigami opened her mouth and then closed it, probably reminded of the situation she had with her Reiatsu. The gigai she currently occupied, though Rukia didn't know it, was only making her situation worse.

Zangetsu sighed, running a hand through his hair. **"Listen. I ain't gonna do anythin ta hurt K—Ichigo. I ain't plannin on hurtin you either unless ya do somethin stupid."**

Rukia's eyes hardened and she opened her mouth, only to freeze as Zangetsu's cold hand covered her mouth. She hadn't even seen him move, and her defensive instincts were screaming at her to stay still.

**"Listen, Kuchiki girl. I don't have a problem with ya. Hell, I'm happy that yer helpin out Ichigo. But—" **Zangetsu's eyes and tone hardened as he let some of his suffocating Reiatsu slip from his tight control—"**remember that my kindness now ain't gonna mean anythin in the long run. If ya do anythin that I don't like, Soul Society is gonna find out that a certain human was given Shinigami powers by a very particular Shinigami."** Rukia stiffened and Zangetsu forced himself to grin mockingly, even though he didn't necessarily feel like doing so. **"You heard me. Now go away; I can cover the night shift, so let Ichigo get some sleep. The kid's got school, ya know."**

Zangetsu released Rukia and the Shinigami, after giving him a long, piercing stare, turned and walked away, her steps rigid but not necessarily angry. She'd gotten most of the answers she had come for, and while the hollow's reassurances weren't nearly enough in her mind, they would suffice for the moment.

If they didn't, Rukia would find some way of making Zangetsu regret crawling out of Hueco Mundo.

She was so distracted in her thoughts that she never even bothered to wonder why Zangetsu wielded blades that looked suspiciously like Zanpakutō.

Zangetsu watched Rukia leave and then sighed, reigning in his Reiatsu again and trying to forget the conversation with Rukia. He would have preferred not to threaten the small Shinigami, but it was the only way to ensure that she didn't probe into anything too deeply.

He had left his gigai the moment he had decided to dispatch the invading hollow population, and he decided that he could recover it at some later date after covering it with some quick Kidō barriers.

Zangetsu began to walk away, towards where he could sense the opening of another Garganta.

He genuinely respected Rukia; her intentions were noble, no matter how ridiculously she went about showing them. Really, execution by Sōkyoku? That was borderline begging to be saved, especially because there was no way Ichigo would ever take one of his comrades giving up her life just so he could live in peace.

Zangetsu's step faltered for just a moment as a few unwelcome memories invaded his thoughts, but he pushed them aside and kept moving. He'd gotten over that already, and he would be damned if he became a wreck again. Hell, he'd spent the first six years after he'd come back drowning in his own self-pity.

Pathetic.

Now that he had finally managed to pull himself together, there was no way he was willing to sink that low again. His composure was going to break the moment he saw Aizen; Zangetsu knew that, and he couldn't bring himself to think about the consequences. Aizen could go straight to Hell for all Zangetsu cared. He deserved that and so much more.

Overhead, the moon shone brightly, its white light providing an odd contrast to the brilliant crimson blood that was sent arcing into the air every time Zangetsu swung one of his blades at a hollow that had been a little to eager to get the lingering souls in the World of the Living. The blood dissipated a moment later, but those few brief moments in time, so familiar to Zangetsu, felt like ages to the weary Zanpakutō.

What was he going to do when his King finally got his real Shinigami powers and found that Zangetsu was the source of his power? How was the Old Man going to react when he found that Zangetsu was no longer the deranged hollow he had been during those first few moments when he spawned in the Shattered Shaft? Would he reject Zangetsu? Try to force himself into control again?

Zangetsu reconsidered his previous line of thought. The Old Man had always been rational when in his "shikai" state. Zangetsu would have precious few moments to explain but it would be enough. The embodiment of Ichigo's Quincy abilities had not been given physical form until the Shattered Shaft either, coming into being at the same time as Ichigo's inner world did. He had always existed, of course, but more as an entity rather than a concrete being that could think and act on its own.

The Old Man had been surprisingly willing to let Zangetsu take over the majority of Ichigo's powers once it had become clear that Zangetsu—without Ichigo's stupid interference—was stronger than he was.

Really, the Zanpakutō couldn't blame the Old Man for wanting to stay in power; protecting Ichigo was what they were made for, and giving that responsibility to a hollow, a sworn enemy, was ridiculous.

Yet the Old Man had done just that, and Ichigo had been the better for it.

Zangetsu let out another weary sigh and switched the direction in which he was walking, adjusting the grip he held on his blades. A hollow tried to run from him, sensing Zangetsu's power and realizing it had no chance of survival, but by the time it had turned tail to run Zangetsu had already jumped up and decapitated it.

The Zanpakutō landed on the ground with almost no noise and sheathed his sword as the hollow collapsed and vanished behind him. He sensed a lapse in hollow activity, allowing the hollow to think slightly more clearly.

He figured that, when the time came, he would do what he always did: wing it. He'd done the same thing every time he interacted with Ichigo in the beginning, figuring that his King would be a hell of a lot more perceptive than he actually turned out to be.

That, in hindsight, probably wasn't the best plan.

Well, it had worked out in the end. Kind of.

Zangetsu scowled and tried to find something else to think about; the melancholy thoughts of the future were getting to him, and he had enough of that when he was at Kisuke's place.

With renewed determination, Zangetsu forced his mind into blankness and devoted himself to slaying any hollow stupid enough to come to Karakura Town.

* * *

><p><em>AN Hope you enjoyed, and if you did, please review! Honestly, this story is far more popular than I ever expected it to be, and I really appreciate the support that you guys have given me._

_I suppose I should respond to any questions from the reviews, so:_

_WhoFeedYasuo: Ichigo will know who Zangetsu is long before the fight with Kenpachi, if you haven't figured that out from this chapter. I will be doing a brief scene of that fight if I ever get to it, from Zangetsu's perspective, of course._

_Still plead 5th: Yeah, Kisuke Urahara should feel bad, but he tends to push aside his conscience at all the wrong moments._

_If you've got any questions, feel free to ask!_

_-RoR_

**_Please review._**


	5. Chapter 5

_I'm going to be gone this weekend and celebrating Christmas next week, so don't expect the frequency of my updates to pick up. Hell, expect it to slow down._

_From what I can tell, you guys like this, so I'll keep doing it. It's fun to write, anyway._

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><p><strong>PART 5<strong>

Zangetsu watched, his countenance nearly blank, as the infinite number of towering skyscrapers that made up Ichigo's inner world collapsed around him in a horrifying display of destruction. A muted roar filled the hollow's ears, and he could feel a deep ache rising in him as Ichigo's soul attempted to pull itself apart and mutate into something far darker than what it was meant to be.

Kisuke had begun Ichigo's Shattered Shaft training. The first parts had gone smoothly, and now, at the end of the seventy-two hour window, Ichigo was struggling to avoid hollowfying. Normally, the influx of hollow Reiatsu would have driven Zangetsu over the edge, but he'd been preparing himself for this moment for a long, long time. He kept his true instinct pushed to one side, knowing that, in the next few minutes, they wouldn't be important.

If he did let them loose, the results would be disastrous, especially for the King. Not even the Old Man would be able to do much more than slow Zangetsu down, and it would take the hollow far too long to recover his senses.

**"At least he's got a damn Asauchi this time," **Zangetsu muttered, glancing around at the destruction with a resigned look on his face. Gravity in the world had not switched yet; Ichigo was not at the point where he would be forcibly pulled into his inner world, so Zangetsu knew that he had his brief window of opportunity to talk to the Quincy half of Ichigo's powers without falling off the side of the building he was standing on.

He scowled as he looked around, his resigned countenance fading. Maybe finding the Old Man in the massive world would be harder than he had expected. It was massive, after all, and Zangetsu still hadn't figured out exactly where the Old Man liked to hang out even after spending almost a decade with him.

"I should have expected this," a clam voice said from directly behind Zangetsu, interrupting the hollow's musings.

**"Or maybe he'll just appear right behind me," **Zangetsu muttered, rolling his eyes before schooling his expression back to one of neutrality and turning to face the Old Man.

The embodiment of Ichigo's Quincy abilities was no different than Zangetsu remembered; his hair and cloak still seemed to follow different laws of physics than the rest of the world and his expression was a mix of hostility and wariness, most likely brought on by Zangetsu's hollow Reiatsu. Zangetsu took a second to remind himself that the Old Man had not grown accustomed to his Reiatsu yet.

**"Yo," **Zangetsu said, waving one hand sarcastically in greeting. **"Let me cut straight ta the point, Old Man. We've got three minutes before King gets in here and flips his shit because he's hollowfyin. I'm here ta make sure he doesn't do that, and ta make sure he doesn't become a hollow. You just do whatever the hell ya wanna do."**

The Old Man's expression never changed, though Zangetsu could see the numerous thought processes that were going on inside his mind.

"That is not how I foresee this playing out," he said eventually, his countenance unreadable. "You would only corrupt Ichigo and force him to change into something he is not."

**"Old Man, yer plannin on takin my place. Let me tell ya; that ain't gonna work. I'm stronger than ya could ever hope ta be."**

That was not a lie; even the embodiment of Ichigo's Quincy powers could tell that the Zanpakutō spirit was far more powerful than he was.

**"Hell," **Zangetsu continued, **"without somethin around ta trigger King's Quincy blood, yer powers ain't even gonna show up in Ichigo's arsenal. All ya would be doin is imitatin my power and suppressin the real thing, makin it easier for somethin ta come up and stab King in the back."**

The Old Man's expression tightened minutely, though he remained silent, evidently waiting for Zangetsu to make more convincing arguments. The hollow sighed and resisted the urge to roll his eyes. At least they weren't fighting.

**"Tch. Yer not makin this easy. Ya said somethin about me corruptin King, right?" **The Old Man nodded his head. **"Okay, well, that's just plain wrong. I ain't gonna do anythin like that ta King unless he needs it. Even then, it ain't gonna be permanent. He'll always be more human than hollow, I can promise ya that."**

The Old Man was wavering; Zangetsu could see it in his eyes. He simply needed one final push to make him commit, and Zangetsu knew just what to say in order to accomplish that.

**"Ya can help him still, ya know. I ain't gonna stop ya from doin that; I've got no reason to."**

The wind seemed to still for a fraction of a second before the destruction continued as the Old Man processed those words.

"What are you talking about?"

**"King's strong, Old Man. I ain't gonna pretend otherwise. Sure, I could handle him on my own, but I'll need help." **Zangetsu grinned, extending one hand forward. **"Ain't that right, Old Man Zangetsu?"**

After so much time spent fighting alongside the embodiment of Ichigo's Quincy abilities, Zangetsu was able to call the Old Man "Zangetsu" with no visible reaction. Before, it had seemed odd to refer to a being that was _not_ Zangetsu as "Zangetsu", but Ichigo had forced him to get over it. Zangetsu felt brief warmth at the memory, but then pushed it aside.

After a tense moment of inaction, the Old Man shook Zangetsu's hand. The hollow grinned.

**"Good. Now I'll go make sure that King doesn't get himself killed or turned into a hollow. Ya can do whatever the hell ya want."**

The Old Man nodded and then vanished in an instant. Zangetsu knew that he was most likely trying to make contingency plans, just in case Ichigo did hollowfy.

**"Ye of little faith," **Zangetsu muttered in a petulant tone, turning to where he sensed Ichigo's presence appearing. It was close, and in a moment Zangetsu had appeared there.

It only took a thought for the Zanpakutō spirit to change from the casual clothes he had been wearing to the inverted Shihakushō that had been his staple clothing during the war. The familiar material made the hollow grin most unsettlingly right as he appeared by Ichigo, making sure to stand in the air.

Ichigo noticed him immediately and didn't seem to have registered that he was standing sideways on a massive skyscraper that was rapidly deconstructing.

The kid had an odd sense of priorities, Zangetsu noted as he watched the shock fill Ichigo's features.

"Z—Zangetsu?" Ichigo stammered, his eyes going wide. "The hell are you doing here? How are you here? And why are you wearing a Shihakushō?"

**"Time fer stuff like that later," **Zangetsu interrupted, deciding that urgency was the way to go, especially given that gravity was bound to switch at any moment. **"We'll talk eventually, I promise."**

Ichigo swallowed, looking like he had a million questions. Then he noticed how Zangetsu was standing.

"How are you flying?" He asked, frowning.

**"How are ya standin on the side of a skyscraper?" **Zangetsu countered, grinning in triumph as Ichigo realized his rather precarious situation.

With a yell that made Zangetsu laugh, Ichigo began falling. The Zanpakutō quickly pulled himself together, however, and chased after Ichigo's plummeting figure. He caught up to him quickly.

**"Now, there's a few things ya gotta know about yer Zanpakutō," **Zangetsu said, his countenance the epitome of calm.

"Is now really a good time to do this?" Ichigo bit out as he fell. Incredibly, he appeared to be maintaining a slight semblance of calm, despite his yelling moments earlier. He was barely stopping himself from panicking, however, and the smug expression on Zangetsu's face was not helping his situation in the slightest.

**"'Course. Now, every Zanpakutō's got three states: sealed, shikai, and bankai. The vast majority of Shinigami ain't gonna get past sealed, and only a tiny fraction of those that achieve shikai manage ta achieve bankai."**

"The hell . . . is bankai?" Ichigo asked, having to pause his speaking for just a moment as he twisted out of the way of a flying white box.

Zangetsu let out an exaggerated sigh. **"Didn't I just explain this? Bankai is the final release of a Zanpakutō and it's most powerful state. Durin this transformation, the Zanpakutō is also at its most vulnerable; any damage the blade sustains in bankai will not be repairable in any way."**

"Then why do—why do people use it?"

Zangetsu grinned, hints of savage glee in his eyes. **"'Cause a Shinigami's power can increase tenfold with the release."**

Had he not been falling to what he perceived as his death, Ichigo would have had a much more surprised reaction. As it were, his eyes merely widened a bit.

**"Now," **Zangetsu continued, clapping his hands together. **"All ya gotta do down there is pick the right box that has yer Shinigami powers in it, or ya hollowfy and I gotta kill ya before ya tear apart yer observers." **He paused and reconsidered. **"Ah, well, Kisuke'd probably kill ya easily enough if he took ya seriously."**

Ichigo opened his mouth to reply to Zangetsu's ominous words, but at that moment he plunged into the water. Zangetsu stopped right above the shifting blue expanse that had submerged most of Ichigo's inner world due to the Shattered Shaft's effect on the teenager's soul.

**"C'mon, King," **he muttered, staring down at the shifting waters and ignoring the destruction around him as millions of white boxes formed from the rapidly deconstructing skyscrapers. **"Don't make me wait."**

A few moments later, Zangetsu saw a glow rising up from the water, and a grin appeared on his face. It was only genuine for a second; it rapidly turned predatory and feral.

**"Good," **Zangetsu hissed as the world seemed to freeze. The ground rumbled as Ichigo's inner world began to reconstruct, and Zangetsu began laughing, the sound crazed and not entirely sane. **"Good, King! Now the fun begins!"**

Behind him, the Quincy portion of Ichigo's abilities materialized. The Old Man's expression was thoughtful, a large improvement from the poorly hidden hostility that had graced it before.

"I am impressed," Old Man Zangetsu mused aloud, avoiding eye contact with his hollow counterpart. "I did not expect Ichigo to avoid hollowfication with your interference."

**"Oi, have a little faith," **Zangetsu replied, the irritation in his voice faked. He was still riding high with the fact that he and Ichigo were whole once more. Of course, Zangetsu was still going to be spending most of his time materialized. He'd done it too much already to give up on the freedom it offered. He'd use his own power, too, so that the King wouldn't notice that his Horse was gone.

Ah, the King and the Horse. Zangetsu's grin widened even more. Things were back the way they were supposed to be.

"What are you planning on doing now that you have established yourself as Ichigo's source of power?"

Zangetsu glanced back, one eyebrow creeping up as a grin settled on his features. **"I thought ya prided yerself on yer intelligence. Didn't ya hear what I said earlier? I ain't doin this alone."**

The hollow took a deep breath, opening his eyes as the clouds in the sky cleared and a beautiful sun shone down, reflected countless times in the windows of the skyscrapers that now stretched to the heavens. He let it out slowly and stretched, cracking his neck in the process.

**"Yer gonna be a part of his powers too, Old Man," **Zangetsu said. **"Yer Zangetsu too, ya got that?"**

Old Man Zangetsu stiffened in surprise for a brief moment, and then inclined his head in acknowledgement as he relaxed. "I see. So it was never your intention to entirely push me out of power."

**"'Course not. A hollow needs competition ta get stronger, ya know."**

"I suppose it does."

**"Oh, almost forgot."** Zangetsu's tone became serious, and he glanced back at the man clad in black behind him. **"I know exactly what ya were plannin on doin if I hadn't been stronger. I know exactly why ya woulda done that."**

The Old Man gave no response save a slight tightening of his lips and narrowing of his eyes.

**"It's understandable; I get why ya did it. Still, don't think that anything that comes next woulda turned out better if ya had done it that way."**

Zangetsu could feel the curiosity of his companion, but he offered no further elaboration on that topic. Instead, he turned around and fully faced the Old Man, clapping his hands together.

**"Now, shall we get down to business? I gotta get my story straight for when the King comes callin."**

There was an undisguised note of glee in Zangetsu's voice.

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><p>Zangetsu sat across from a standing Ichigo in Ichigo's inner world, trying to keep his expression as bored as possible. Given the way that Ichigo had been ranting for the past five minutes, it wasn't hard. Zangetsu had already counted the number of skyscrapers he could see in any direction, the number of clouds in the sky, and the average number of times Ichigo said, "this is impossible" in every sentence.<p>

He averaged at least two.

"You're my Zanpakutō but that's impossible because I've seen you in the real world and Rukia's seen you and you weren't a ghost so that's impossible it doesn't make any sense! I've known you for years and you never even said a thing about something like this and I'm sure you would've mentioned something as impossible as this at some point!" Ichigo took a deep breath, running his hand through his hair in exasperation.

Zangetsu took advantage of the brief pause in Ichigo's speaking and interrupted. **"Oi. Calm down and stop speakin so damn much. It ain't helpin anythin."**

Ichigo scowled. "Oh, sure. Let's just completely skip over the fact that _you're my Zanpakutō!"_

**"Yeah, let's."**

Ichigo's scowl became considerably more annoyed. "Could you at least try to take this seriously? Did you know this all along? From the moment you met me? Exactly how long have you known?"

**"One question at a time."**

Ichigo took a deep breath and picked the best question from the bunch. "Fine. How long have you known?"

Zangetsu grinned. **"Nice question."** He tilted his head while his eyes searched the sky. He briefly thought about whether he should include the time in the future or just make something up now. After a few seconds, he came to a decision and looked back at Ichigo. **"Ever since I met ya. The connection was there immediately."**

"Is this how Zanpakutō usually work?"

The innocent question was enough to get Zangetsu to laugh out loud for quite some time, enough for one of Ichigo's eyebrows to start twitching.

"Hey, it's not funny!"

**"Yes," **Zangetsu gasped, clutching his stomach and grinning around the giggled that escaped him, **"yes it is."**

After another minute and the end of Ichigo's patience, Zangetsu pulled himself together and abruptly became serious.

**"Listen, King, 'cause I'm only explainin this once. Ya don't have any time ta waste, anyway."** Zangetsu took a deep breath. **"Any Zanpakutō spirit is born from its wielder's soul. Normally, a Shinigami would gradually imprint his soul onto an Asauchi, or 'nameless' Zanpakutō that doesn't have a spirit yet, until a separate entity would form. You, however, didn't do that. We're an anomaly because I was already created for reasons I can't give ya, so think of the process as being already complete except for a physical sword. Since Kisuke Urahara gave ya an Asauchi, all ya did was transfer the part of yer soul that was yer Shinigami powers – me – ta the sword."** Zangetsu finished with a sarcastic flourish. **"There ya go. Better now?"**

"That . . . actually made sense."

Zangetsu raised one eyebrow. **"What were ya expectin? Magic?"**

Ichigo shrugged. "Honestly, it wouldn't matter." He glanced up at the sky, his gaze going distant for a moment before refocusing on Zangetsu. "I'm running out of time before Kisuke wants to train again. This is the only break I'm getting and it's because you insisted, so I'm betting this isn't the only reason you called me here."

**"I do enjoy it when ya actually demonstrate signs of intelligence, King."**

"Shut up."

Zangetsu grinned and then twisted, calling out to the skyscrapers. **"Oi! Old Man!"**

In a rustle of black cloth, Old Man Zangetsu appeared.

**"Now, ya haven't officially gotten the shikai release yet. Normally, ta do that, ya have ta learn my name. Ya kind of already know it. So, ya have ta learn his name."**

The Old Man's expression never changed; it remained stony.

"Wait, so my Zanpakutō is sealed right now?"

Zangetsu nodded, and a look of understanding crossed Ichigo's features. **"In the future, yer gonna find that it'll be far easier for ya ta keep yer blade in shikai. It'll be more convenient."**

"I'll keep that in mind." Ichigo turned to look at the Old Man, his eyes narrowing as his brain filtered through possible names. Then he sighed. "Okay, this is really hard to do when I have no clue what this guy is."

**"Who, not what," **Zangetsu advised, hiding a grin at the barely perceptible irritation that flickered across his older counterpart's features. Technically younger counterpart, but Zangetsu didn't feel like opening that can of worms just yet.

Ichigo launched into thought once more only to be frustrated again a few moments later.

**"C'mon, it ain't that hard."**

"That's because you already know it," Ichigo muttered, though he didn't make his comment too audible. He got the feeling that Zangetsu had a very unpredictable temperament.

Zangetsu sighed, loosely hooking his elbows around his knees and staring up at Ichigo with a slightly irritated expression.

**"Look. This is yer inner world, right?"**

"Yeah."

**"And only Zanpakutō are in here, right?"**

"Yeah."

**"So . . .?"**

Ichigo blinked, and then stared at the Old Man.

"You're telling me the Old Man is a Zanpakutō spirit too?"

Zangetsu and the black-clothed figure next to him exchanged hidden, amused glances before looking back at Ichigo.

"You have yet to guess my name," the Old Man said. "Should you wait much longer, we will not deem it fit for you to obtain shikai."

Ichigo nodded. "Yeah, I figured." He paused for a moment, glancing back at Zangetsu. Then understanding appeared to dawn on his expression. "Old Man, is your name Zangetsu?"

**"Finally!"**

Ichigo scowled at his white counterpart. "Hey, that was just a guess!"

**"And ya got it right. Congratulations! Now get out there before Kisuke decapitates ya for not payin attention or somethin."**

Ichigo blanched. "He does that?"

**"If yer not payin attention," **Zangetsu replied, grinning in a very sickening way, **"yes. He does."**

Ichigo was gone from his inner world in an instant, leaving Zangetsu to his own amusement.

**"'Course," **the hollow muttered, lying down on his back and staring up at the sky, **"I've got no fuckin clue what he's gonna do when he finds out I'm a hollow."**

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><p><em>AN You know, I'm vaguely hoping that the Bleach manga will reveal Ichigo's bankai before I have to. 'Course, that's not going to happen. *sighs* Oh well. I've got a contingency plan, anyway._

**_Reviews (just questions I feel like answering):_**

**general zargon:** the next chapter I post will probably be one of those "filler chapters" from Ichigo's perspective. It probably won't be more than 500-1000 words.

**kid (guest):** Unless my profile says otherwise, I'm continuing this.

**WhoFeedYasuo:** This should've cleared up your questions. I hope. I'm really too lazy to explain, so if you still don't understand, Ichigo's got his dual-bladed Zanpakuto just like the Bleach manga. He's not quite that powerful yet, but he's on his way.

**Dokubodaminabo:** Dude, you're making me nervous by reviewing like that and then staying silent for the rest of the story.

That's all the reviews that I think are important, so if I didn't respond to yours know that I did read it and that I'm not sorry for my incurable laziness.

Until next time,

-RoR


	6. Chapter 6: Interlude

_I said that I would be doing occasional brief chapters from Ichigo's perspective. Here's the first one, and you should expect it to be one of the longer ones. I already had this written before I posted the last chapter, so don't expect another update for a few days at the very least. If things get bad, those days _may_ turn into weeks._

_I'll try to keep my profile updated if anything serious comes up._

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><p><strong>Part 6 [Interlude]<strong>

Ichigo desperately blocked another slash from Kisuke Urahara, only to be knocked back several meters. His feet left deep ruts in the ground and Ichigo winced as his numerous wounds were aggravated. Blood ran down from a shallow cut on his forehead, dripping into one eye and forcing Ichigo to squint that eye. Kisuke was taking advantage of that weakness and attacking Ichigo constantly from the teenager's right side, forcing Ichigo on the defensive.

The swords—a cleaver blade and a large trench knife, both black in color—that made up Ichigo's Zanpakutō rested in Ichigo's hands and he tried to avoid scowling at them. He wasn't used to wielding two blades at once and it showed.

Kisuke came forward again, his sword flashing in the lights of the basement.

Ichigo let his body take over, relying on his instincts. Zangetsu had reiterated the idea of trusting his instincts over and over again in their brief training sessions when Kisuke knocked Ichigo down and Zangetsu dragged Ichigo into his inner world. Those sessions had been invaluable, giving Ichigo that much extra time to grow familiar with his weapons, and Zangetsu's advice to trust his instincts had pulled Ichigo out of several dangerous situations when Kisuke forgot to pull his punches.

Ichigo could never stay in his inner world long, since the odd time dilation that occurred there wasn't that extreme. Still, only four days had passed, and Ichigo had already improved a tremendous amount.

While Ichigo fought, allowing his instincts to take over, his thoughts began to wander.

How long had Zangetsu really known about Ichigo? The older teenager was obviously Ichigo's elder, and their resemblance was unmistakable, far more so than when Ichigo had been a child. Ichigo hadn't commented on it, of course, but suspicions were brewing in the back of his mind. Zangetsu's status as a part of Ichigo's soul was a good reason for the similarity in their appearances, but Ichigo still found it odd that Zangetsu appeared to be older. He wondered if that was what he would look like in a few years, and found that the idea wasn't unappealing.

Zangetsu also tended to appear when Ichigo was at his worst, which he had done especially in the beginning. The white-haired boy had appeared after Ichigo's mother had been killed, and then again when Ichigo was doing his best to force anyone who had a problem with his hair to reconsider their priorities.

And the most recent time, Zangetsu had appeared just in time to save Ichigo's life, killing two powerful (according to Rukia, anyway) hollows with ease.

Rukia seemed suspicious of him, but Ichigo didn't know what to think. On one hand, Zangetsu had comforted him when he needed it and supported him in his darkest times, providing a crutch that Ichigo had desperately needed. He had never given any indication of wanting to hurt Ichigo (not including his borderline sadistic training sessions), and displayed every sign of wanting Ichigo to be as strong as he could possibly be. He was powerful, capable of protecting Ichigo when the time came, and he was apparently a part of Ichigo's soul, _made_ for the purpose of supporting Ichigo.

On the other hand, Zangetsu had withheld several important pieces of information, the most prominent of which being his status as a piece of Ichigo's soul. He still hadn't really explained his origins or how he had come to exist before Ichigo's Shinigami powers had even been awoken. He constantly antagonized Rukia (though Ichigo could at least slightly understand why he did it at times) and never appeared to show any guilt or repentance for his actions. His loyalty appeared to be to Ichigo, and to Ichigo alone. Rukia's suspicion also unnerved Ichigo; the Shinigami hadn't been wrong yet, and there was something distinctly _wrong_ with the spirit's aura, something that Ichigo couldn't put his finger on.

It irritated him to no end, though he hadn't let Zangetsu know any of his thoughts. Part of the reason for that were Ichigo's natural reservations, and the other was the way the spirit acted when he didn't think people were paying attention. His eyes would grow distant and unfocused, filled with pain, and his posture would become weary and weighed down with events that Ichigo didn't think he would ever fully understand.

And then the sword spirit would realize Ichigo was looking, and he would grin as the remnants of that strange other side vanished without a trace. Ichigo had tried to ask, but the older teenager had warned him that asking questions was not a good idea.

The most damning thing about the spirit, Ichigo thought, was the way he battled. Zangetsu had no mercy, and he was undoubtedly the strongest combatant Ichigo had ever faced. Even when Ichigo landed a hit, the substitute Shinigami got the distinct impression that he was being _allowed_ to win. It made his moments of victory somewhat bitter, but that was offset by the pride Ichigo had begun to notice in Zangetsu's eyes.

It was brief, but clearly genuine, and every time he saw it Ichigo couldn't help dismissing his doubts and reservations about Zangetsu. The older teenager reminded Ichigo of his dad, but in a somewhat different way.

Ichigo had slowly begun to realize that Zangetsu was like an older brother to him, and he wondered if what he was experiencing was what Karin and Yuzu experienced with him.

Zangetsu would talk to Ichigo without hesitation, and when he was residing in Ichigo's inner world and not helping to dispatch any rogue hollows around Karakura Town he constantly communicated with Ichigo, giving battle tips and tactics to help Ichigo gain an edge on Kisuke. His input had been critical for Ichigo, since Kisuke couldn't help him with the techniques involved with wielding a dual-bladed Zanpakutō.

Once or twice, when Kisuke got overzealous, Zangetsu had even seized control of Ichigo's body without Ichigo's permission. The first time it had ever happened, Ichigo had been too tired to really process what had happened. Only later had Zangetsu explained what had occurred (with a surprisingly guilty light lurking in his eyes that Ichigo wondered at) and apologized.

Ichigo had accepted the apology and admitted that Zangetsu's tactic of taking over his body would probably be best for teaching Ichigo. Since then, Zangetsu had controlled Ichigo's body on a regular basis when Ichigo needed to learn new techniques. The process was quick and painless, and despite the odd feeling that came with not being in control of his body Ichigo found that the method was incredibly effective.

Still, the substitute Shinigami didn't know what to make of Zangetsu. When the spirit observed the fight from the material world, having grown bored with staying in Ichigo's inner world, Ichigo found his gaze to be unsettling at best. The aura that surrounded the Zanpakutō spirit was completely opposite that of Ichigo's other Zanpakutō spirit, and Ichigo didn't know whether that was normal or not. Kisuke claimed to have no idea either, but with the way the shopkeeper seemed to function Ichigo wasn't inclined to trust everything he said.

The Old Man, as Ichigo had decided to call his Zanpakutō spirit, was the polar opposite of Zangetsu. He was calm, levelheaded, and dispensed tactical advice with cold efficiency. He and Zangetsu appeared to work well together, since one's personality complemented the other's.

The inconsistencies that made up Zangetsu's existence continued to nag at Ichigo, and the teen began to suspect that he was missing pieces of a puzzle he hadn't even begun to put together yet.

"Stay focused, Ichigo!"

Ichigo snapped out of his thoughts just in time to block a particularly powerful strike from Kisuke, and he was forced to discard his lines of thinking entirely as the eccentric shopkeeper began to intensify his attack.

* * *

><p><em>AN I've always believed that Ichigo isn't as dumb as he appears to be in some parts of Bleach. Plus, this is a kind of AU, so he will be smarter, but not enough to really change anything that I'm not already changing._

**_Reviews:_**

**_general zargon:_**_ Ichigo would take having a hollow for a Zanpakuto fairly well (I agree with you on that), but Zangetsu is worried about how Ichigo will react when he remembers that his mother was killed by a hollow; there will be an inherent distrust there that Zangetsu doesn't want for the sake of efficient and effective fighting._

**_WhoFeedYasuo: _**_I've already answered your review via PM, but I think I'll reiterate it for anyone who's curious._

**_Ichigo's power level:_**_Ichigo, in terms of raw Reiatsu, is probably at the point where he recovered his Shinigami powers after using Mugetsu. However, he doesn't have the skill and experience necessary to use that Reiatsu as effectively as he could at that point in the series. He'll get there, but not for a little while._

_If you people haven't noticed, I like strong!Ichigo as a character, so he'll be getting stronger and stronger as this story goes on even if it's not explicitly mentioned._

_Thank you to everyone who reviewed (I only respond to reviews with questions/things that warrant a response), and if I didn't respond to your review please know that I still read it and that I appreciate the fact that you took the time to write it!_

_Until we meet again,_

_-RoR_

_**Please review.**  
><em>


	7. Chapter 7

_Man, I did a lot of typing tonight. Finished this chapter, helped a friend with her fan fiction, made progress on _Rewind_ and _Rift_, and almost finished _Ichigo, Meet Ichigo_. I feel so on top of things._

_Maybe it's because I'm not in school at the moment._

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><p><strong>Part 7<strong>

Zangetsu and Ichigo sat next to the river. They hadn't been there for very long; five minutes at most. Even with everything that had been happening, they had made sure to come to the river as the sun was setting. It had become a tradition for them over the years that they had known each other to always come to the river during sunset.

Ichigo still didn't like sunsets.

Zangetsu still didn't care.

The orange-haired teen was sitting quietly, staring across the water with unfocused eyes and a neutral expression. His body was unmarked, but Zangetsu knew that Ichigo's soul was a different story. He was bruised, cut, and bandaged in countless places, especially his abdomen. Kisuke hadn't gone easy in the slightest for the ten days they had spent training, and Zangetsu's interference hadn't made Ichigo's life any easier. Zangetsu used far more Reiryoku than Ichigo in his attacks and defense, and though Zangetsu used his own, separate reserves that he had courtesy of his time travel fairly often, he still found himself automatically using Ichigo's Reiryoku as well. It left Ichigo feeling drained, but the orange-haired teen always continued to train even when he should have collapsed from exhaustion many times over.

His tenacity and determination, as always, filled Zangetsu with grudging respect.

At least Ichigo had become fairly proficient with his swords. Even though the teen still favored using just one blade at a time, he was more than capable of fighting with two, though he used that as a kind of trump card. Ichigo tended to keep the trench blade sheathed at his waist, hidden by white bandages that also acted as a convenient sheath. Zagnetsu knew that most unskilled opponents wouldn't notice Ichigo's second blade until it was far too late.

And as the teenager fought he would only get better; by the end of his trip to Soul Society, Ichigo would no doubt be a formidable opponent for any of the captains save Yamamoto, and possibly the oldest three. Captains Unohana, Ukitake, and Kyōraku were undoubtedly some of the most powerful Shinigami Soul Society had to offer. They had lived for hundreds of years and would likely find ways to counter Ichigo's abilities. Their bankai were extraordinarily powerful, and without luck on his side Ichigo would most likely fail against them.

Kenpachi Zaraki wouldn't be a problem. He hadn't developed his abilities to the point yet where he would be a major threat to Ichigo. Ichigo had beaten him the first time around and he was far stronger now than he had been before. Zangetsu had seen to that personally.

Zangetsu sighed, abandoning those lines of thinking. He hadn't come to the river just to think; he'd already spent his free time when Ichigo was training thinking, planning for every possible outcome of the Soul Society trip. He had even planned for after the Soul Society trip and what he was going to do about Aizen.

Even thinking about the man made Zangetsu want to punch the nearest convenient wall. Luckily, there were no convenient walls nearby, so Zangetsu settled on glaring at the water in front of him. The hollow didn't know what he would do when he saw Aizen; he couldn't even plan out possible outcomes because just thinking the traitorous bastard's name was enough to derail his thoughts and make Zangetsu rage.

The hollow reached to his right in an attempt to stop thinking about those kinds of things and his fingers closed around a smooth gray stone. He picked it up, pulled his arm back, and then shot it forward, letting the stone go as he did so. It flew through the air, bouncing off the shining water many times before clattering onto the other shore.

Ripples spread from where the rock had made contact with the water, eventually getting swallowed by the current.

"I guess I'm going to have to make it to the other shore now too," Ichigo said. His voice was oddly withdrawn, and Zangetsu glanced over, sensing that something was bothering his partner.

**"Somethin' wrong, King?" **Zangetsu didn't understand why Ichigo would be upset. He had finished his rudimentary training and had the skills to go save Rukia; shouldn't he be more . . . well, shouldn't he be happier? **"Is this about that Kuchiki chick?"**

"Rukia," Ichigo corrected, glancing over at his Zanpakutō with a scowl. "Her name hasn't changed; it's still Rukia."

**"Whatever," **Zangetsu replied dismissively, picking up another rock. He didn't throw it this time, instead choosing to hold it in his hands and run his fingers over its smooth surface. **"Either way we're gonna be rescuin her in about half an hour. Her name doesn't really matter, anyway"**

Ichigo sighed, leaning back and looking at the encroaching night sky. "Yeah, I know." His words were clearly meant for the first half of what Zangetsu had said; the substitute Shinigami appeared to be ignoring the rest of Zagnetsu's words.

Zangetsu eyed Ichigo for a few moments, thinking over the question he wanted to ask Ichigo, one he had never really asked before in this timeline or the one before it. The question had been indirectly answered several times, but Zangetsu had never been paying attention at the right moments.

Hell, knowing how he had been, he'd probably just dismissed Ichigo's words as a sign of being weak, even though Ichigo had proven to be anything but that.

He'd been such an idiot the first time around.

**"Hey, King."**

"What is it, Zangetsu?"

**"Why are ya goin ta save Rukia?"**

Ichigo blinked, turning to Zangetsu and frowning. "Why?" He repeated slowly. "That's a stupid question to ask. She saved my life."

Zangetsu frowned, the grip he had on the rock in his hands tightening. **"That ain't it. Ya saved her life; yer debt's paid. So that ain't the reason yer goin all the way ta Soul Society and riskin yer life all over again just ta save her. Ya have another reason."**

Ichigo was quiet for a minute before he reached forward, grabbing a rock from the small pile that he had collected earlier. He stared at it, clearly thinking, before he opened his mouth.

"It's hard to explain."

Zangetsu's nonplussed look indicated that the hollow wouldn't take that as an excuse for Ichigo not to speak. The orange-haired teen sighed and turned the rock over in his hands.

"It's not just that she saved my life. I mean, you've saved my life plenty of times; it feels like everyone is out to save me, even Kisuke and Uryū - in his own special way - and Orihime and Chad. But Rukia . . . she didn't have to save me. She didn't know me, and she was putting her life and her job on the line just to give me the possible ability to save myself and my family. If she hadn't, Yuzu and Karin would've died in that stupid hollow attack. I owe her for that, because it's not just my life that she saved. She also saved the lives of my family."

Zangetsu was quiet for a minute, absorbing that information. After a brief moment's hesitation, he threw the stone he had been holding. It sailed over the water, not bouncing, until it splashed into the reflection of the setting sun on the water. Both boys watched the ripples spread until they disappeared. Then Zangetsu spoke once more.

**"That ain't it."**

"What?"

**"That ain't it," **the hollow repeated, looking at Ichigo. **"Yeah, the 'I owe you for savin me' thing is true, but it ain't yer entire set of reasons for goin ta Soul Society. There's somethin else."**

"What are you, a therapist?" Ichigo asked rhetorically, though there was no real malice in his words. He let out a deep breath, staring at the stone in his hands once more. "It's just . . . It's similar to what you've done for me, especially at the start, I guess. Rukia didn't have a reason to stick around or track me down other than her job. She could've been distant like her status required, but instead we became . . . well, friends. We fought together, helped each other. She even trained me to help me grow stronger."

**"And?"** Zangetsu prodded, sensing that there was even more.

"And she's a good person. There's just something about her that I can't ignore; she's kind and caring and determined and strong and everything that someone should be."

**"Strong except for the part where she got herself captured."**

Ichigo shot Zangetsu a look. "Knowing her, she thought that would help things and that I'd stay behind. She thought it was the best possible option for her since Soul Society was apparently tracking her and watching Karakura Town this whole time."

Ichigo let out a dry laugh. "It's so stupid. She doesn't deserve to die. She was just doing her job and she did it a hell of a lot more thoroughly than what I bet is expected over there. There's no reason for her to be treated like a damn criminal, much less executed! Good people like her don't deserve to die!"

**"So ya want ta help her because she saved yer life, the lives of yer family, and 'cause she's a good person," **Zangetsu summarized, raising an eyebrow. Ichigo nodded absently.

"That, and she made me stronger. Now I can defend everyone I care about; that's all I wanted. Hell, it's still all I want."

**"Yer satisfied with the power ya have?"**

Ichigo scowled, looking at his free hand as he clenched and unclenched it. "I don't think I'll ever be. I know you know about how easily that captain took me down; there's probably more Shinigami like him in Soul Society. If I can't beat them and stop them from killing Rukia, what's going to stop them from hurting my friends? They seemed pretty stuck up and I bet that they won't like having more humans with Reiatsu and the ability to see souls and hollows."

**"Uryū, Chad, and Orihime ain't weak,"** Zangetsu pointed out, grabbing another rock from his considerable pile.

"'Course not. They're some of the strongest people I know. That doesn't mean I don't want to keep them safe. Even that stuck-up, asshole Quincy." Ichigo muttered the last part under his breath, and Zangetsu had to suppress a small smile. If only Ichigo knew how close he and Uryū would become, and the trials they would face . . . but no, Zangetsu couldn't tell him. Ichigo wasn't ready for that information yet.

"Hey, Zangetsu?"

**"What is it?"**

"What do you think about Rukia?"

Zangetsu frowned. **"What?"**

"You know," Ichigo responded, throwing the rock he had been holding for the past few minutes and watching it skip several times across the water. "What do you think of her? As a person?"

The hollow blinked. He hadn't expected Ichigo to ask that question, and the hollow didn't have an answer on hand. Zangetsu stared at the shifting waters of the river and thought over the question.

What _did_ he think of Rukia? In this timeline, she was a far cry from the powerful, stoic warrior she had become, but she was also far less burdened, far more . . . alive. She wasn't weak, and she still had plenty of room for growth.

She still had her odd sense of humor and that even weirder obsession with Chappy the rabbit. The little shrimp even had the audacity to kick Zangetsu whenever he commented offhandedly on her height or her horrible, horrible, absolutely terrible rabbit drawings. Somehow, Ichigo usually got away with slight irritation and the possibility of punishment, but Rukia had taken sadistic pleasure in drawing on Zangetsu's face for weeks after the hollow had gone slightly too far in his "constructive" criticism. She had always done it in front of Ichigo, too, relying on the substitute Shinigami's sense of humor to trap Zangetsu into being unable to get Rukia back right away. After all, Zangetsu wasn't a fan of outright refusing to listen to his king (he was the horse, after all), and Rukia seemed to have – at least unconsciously – realized that fact.

Overall, she wasn't the Rukia she would become, but the potential was there.

**"She's nice," **Zangetsu eventually said. **"Kind, like ya said. She's got inner strength, too, somethin that isn't obvious right at the start of things. Her methods ain't that great, but her heart's in the right place. She just needs someone to bring her back inta line if she takes things a bit too far." **Zangetsu paused for a second. **"Like letting herself get kidnapped, for one."**

Ichigo closed his eyes in pain at the memory. "If I had just been a little stronger," he muttered, letting the thought trail off. Zangetsu frowned.

**"If ya had been a little bit stronger, ya would've given all of the Gotei Thirteen an excuse ta come ta Karakura Town, and things woulda gotten even messier than they already are. At leat this way, we have the element of surprise. No matter what ya coulda done, King, Rukia woulda gotten kidnapped. Trust me on that."**

"I still don't like it."

**"Good. Ya shouldn't. I'm sure Soul Society is filled with idiots, anyway."**

Ichigo let out a crooked grin. "You're probably right. Why else would they go after Rukia, and Rukia alone?"

"Yoo-hoo! Ichigo!"

Both teenagers stiffened before twisting and looking at the man currently approaching them. The man wore an odd striped bucket had and clogs, topped with a cane that Zangetsu and Ichigo knew hid a powerful and deadly sword.

"Hat-n-Clogs," Ichigo acknowledged, getting to his feet. "Is it time to go, then?"

"You guessed it," Kisuke affirmed, his eyes shadowed beneath his hat. Zangetsu wasn't fooled; he knew that the shopkeeper was staring at him, silently asking if he was ready for this. Zangetsu nodded almost imperceptibly and then felt Kisuke's gaze shift away from him and onto Ichigo. "Are you ready, Ichigo?"

"Of course," Ichigo replied confidently, though Zangetsu noted the trepidation hidden in the substitute Shinigami's voice. "I'll get Rukia back no matter what!"

Zangetsu watched as the odd pair of shopkeeper and teenager walked away, their voices becoming quieter and quieter with each step they took. The hollow spent a minute putting the stone piles back where they had been gathered from and then paused. He glanced at the shifting golden waters of the river for a moment, his eyes flashing with a hidden pain before his expression closed and he turned to follow his allies.

Far above Karakura Town, the sky continued its descent into darkness.

* * *

><p><em>AN And that's it for this time. Next time, expect Soul Society and some fun non-canon stuff. _

_For clarification, let me reiterate/answer a few things:_

_1) Yes, Ichigo is going to become quite strong. Will he be godlike? No. Will he dominate his opponents? Not any more than canon (in Soul Society, at least; I haven't decided on the rest)._

_2) No, there will be no pairings in this story. It's purely Ichigo and Zangetsu getting to know each other. I don't like writing romance at all._

_3) Will Ichigo find out that Zangetsu is from the future? Ichigo's not an idiot. Take a guess._

_4) What happened in Zangetsu's future? Bad stuff. Very, very bad stuff. Suffice to say, it broke Ichigo to the point where Zangetsu was forced to separate from him and become his own being, the details of which I hope I never have to get into because explaining it would be a pain._

_5) Speaking of that, Zangetsu and Ichigo do have two different reserves of Reiryoku. Zangetsu, however, can tap into Ichigo's Reiryoku while Ichigo cannot tap into Zangetsu's. Ichigo doesn't really even know about Zangetsu's power reserves, in fact. That reserve of Reiryoku that Zangetsu carried over from the future allows him to materialize whenever he wants and roam freely as though he were a complete soul and not just part of one._

_Hope this helped anyone that was confused or just curious. Now, onto reviews. Because I'm lazy, I'm not going to be bolding your pen names anymore. It's a pain and fanfiction doesn't like it very much._

_QueenKarin13: Already answered your question. I think._

_Gacsam: Yeah, I've written 3 Bleach stories and one crossover between Bleach and Fairy Tail. I like to think that I'm a big deal. As for the other thing, I'm well aware of Ichigo's abysmal control over his Reiryoku and his constant leaking of Reiatsu. I probably just screwed up Reiatsu and Reiryoku at some point. Whoops._

_WhoFeedYasuo: Did I answer you already? Meh, I'm too lazy to check. I think I did. Anyway, the Grand Fisher fight went as it did in canon. Ichigo's knowledge about his mother is the same as canon up to this point too._

_Lord Necrotis II: I appreciate the compliment. As for the Rukia thing, I hope this chapter went into more depth concerning how Ichigo views Rukia._

_Tovahchan: I can't wait to see where I'm going with this too._

_Harbinger of Kaos: Ichigo's mask is going to be the one with the two vertical stripes going over each eye. Zangetsu won't let him use his full-out horned mask (Resurreccion, whatever) because that would mean that Ichigo would be able to access Zangetsu's full power and the pressure would kill Ichigo very quickly._

_general zargon: I hope you enjoyed the chapter!_

_Winter's Folly: Thank you!_

_10th Squad 3rd Seat: Man, you went through a lot of my stories. Your reviews are short, but I do appreciate that you review more than just the most recent chapter._

_Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and I hope to see you all here next time, which will probably be in a little over a week if all goes well._

_Until we meet again,_

_-RoR_

**_Please review._**


	8. Chapter 8

_Happy (belated) New Year!_

_The next update won't be for a very long time. I'm officially on hiatus as of . . . well, ten minutes from when I'm typing this, when I post this chapter. Unfortunately, it's going to be quite the wait before the next one, but it should give me time to work on _Rift_ and _Rewind _for those of you that have read those Bleach stories__, as well as my schoolwork._

_Yay, exams.  
><em>

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><p><strong>Part 8<strong>

Zangetsu watched, balling his hands into fists in frustration and anger, as Yoruichi explained the concept of the doll to Ichigo.

Achieve _actual_ bankai? In three days?

Zangetsu growled low in his throat, feeling an instinctual dislike for the doll in Yoruichi's grasp. He had no problem with Yoruichi on her own, but Ichigo was simply _not capable_ of supporting the power his true bankai offered yet. It would crush him in a way far more painful than the way the fake bankai had originally. If he tried to use it, he would die.

Zangetsu did not doubt that for a moment.

Ichigo was not going to achieve bankai, not here, not for a while yet. He would just have to use this time to intensify his training; Ichigo would learn Getsuga Tenshō, and then Getsuga Jūjishō, and then a myriad of other techniques between the two to augment his fighting style. There were numerous things he could do to grow stronger.

Bankai was out of the question.

Ichigo's original method of achieving bankai this way hadn't been a problem, because it hadn't been Ichigo's true bankai; the Old Man had simply been giving Ichigo an excuse to access more of his inherent power. This was different.

Zangetsu felt a strange tug on his consciousness as Ichigo stabbed the cleaver blade into the doll. The hollow rode the feeling, materializing in Soul Society with a scowl planted firmly on his features.

Except he appeared _next to_ the doll, which promptly fell over, but not before Zangetsu pulled the black cleaver blade out of it and pointed the tip at Ichigo. The teenager had frozen in surprise at the anger in Zangetsu's features.

**"Bankai?"** Zangetsu growled, his eyes flashing with fury as he kicked the doll away with savage intent. It flew several meters before hitting the ground once more. **"The hell do you mean, 'bankai'? Yoruichi, he ain't ready!"**

"I'll be ready in three days!" Ichigo insisted, a determined glint in his eyes. Zangetsu rounded on him.

**"Idiot!"** Painful memories of when Ichigo had achieved his true bankai the first time and the reasons why he had been forced to do so crashed through Zangetsu's consciousness but he pushed them aside. **"Yer not ready, and I can guarantee ya that three days ain't gonna make a damned difference!"**

"Please, Zangetsu," Ichigo said. "I need it if I'm going to save Rukia!"

**"Then you'll have ta save her without bankai," **Zangetsu growled, his voice low and filled dangerous undertones. The Old Man materialized next to him, piggybacking on Zangetsu's power to accomplish the task. His expression indicated that he clearly agreed with Zangetsu's words. Yoruichi raised an eyebrow at the appearance of the second spirit, but didn't display that much surprise. Zangetsu guessed that Kisuke had already briefed her on most of the details of Ichigo's abilities, which was fine.

Ichigo clenched his hands into fists. "How the hell am I supposed to save Rukia with just shikai if bankai is supposed to be such a huge advantage?"

**"If ya train with us," **Zangetsu replied, including the Old Man in his words, **"you'll find out."**

Yoruichi stepped in. "You're Zangetsu, right?" She asked. Zangetsu nodded. "Is there a reason you are preventing Ichigo from attaining his bankai release?"

**"I just said it."**

The Shihōin princess frowned. "Ichigo is strong. He would be – "

**"No. He wouldn't. I ain't changin my mind; stop tryin ta make me."**

Ichigo appeared to be hurt, and Zangetsu struggled to keep his expression neutral.

"Why, Zangetsu?" Ichigo asked. His voice was calm, but there was a myriad of emotions swirling within him, poorly hidden by his expression. "Why won't you allow me to achieve bankai? I need it to save Rukia!"

**"Bullshit!" **Zangetsu snapped, scowling. **"Yer plenty strong without it! Now ya can either train with the Old Man and I or ya can sit on yer ass and do nothin! Let Rukia die like that, 'cause yer not learnin bankai here!"**

Zangetsu could see that Yoruichi was watching the exchange, her mind clearly working as she stared at the arguing pair. Zanpakutō ignored her in favor of glaring at Ichigo, daring the substitute Shinigami to make his decision. After a few more moments, Ichigo relented, most likely out of the respect he still had for Zangetsu.

"Fine," he said. "Let's go."

The orange-haired teen began walking away and the Old Man followed. Zangetsu stayed behind, knowing that Yoruichi had some questions for him. He kept his scowl firmly in place, not trusting the expression that would emerge on his features if he let his muscles relax.

**"Well? Whattaya want?"**

"I just want to talk, Zangetsu," Yoruichi replied diplomatically, holding her hands up, palms facing the irate Zanpakutō spirit. "Is that really so bad?"

**"If ya want ta talk what I know ya want ta talk about, yeah."**

Yoruichi's eyes narrowed, and her hands fell back to her sides. "So you know about it?"

Zangetsu scoffed, crossing his arms in a clear display of his bemusement. **"No need ta beat around the bush, Yoruichi. Yeah, I know about the mask that's been conveniently helpin Ichigo and savin his life. What about it?"**

"Kisuke informed me of a few things before we left for Soul Society," Yoruichi said slowly. "The fact that you are a—"

Zangetsu darted forward, putting his hand over Yoruichi's mouth before the Flash Goddess had time to blink. A wind blew past Yoruichi in the wake of Zangetsu's sudden movement, and Zangetsu could tell that Yoruichi was still trying to process his speed.

The hollow reached out his senses and was gratified when he realized that Ichigo was still within earshot, though the hollow wasn't sure if the substitute Shinigami would actually be paying attention. Hopefully, the Old Man would keep him diverted.

**"Don't say it out loud," **he hissed, refocusing on Yoruichi. **"I don't want ta take any chances, got it, Shihōin? Just wait until Ichigo's not in danger of hearin ya."**

Yoruichi nodded, her expression quickly becoming composed once again as Zangetsu dropped his hand from her face and jumped back to where he had been.

"As I was saying, the fact of . . . your existence was given to me. Therefore, I presume that the mask is . . . also related to that."

Her speech was oddly stilted from her attempts to keep Zangetsu's secret from reaching Ichigo's ears. The hollow raised an eyebrow, since Yoruichi's speech was normally smooth and honey-like.

Zangetsu sighed, already tired with trying to keep his secret hidden. He extended his senses and located Ichigo, who was finally far enough away to be out of earshot thanks to the Old Man's efforts. He relaxed fractionally upon realizing that and then turned back to Yoruichi.

**"Ichigo's outta earshot, so now ya can talk normally."**

Yoruichi nodded her acknowledgement. "So, this mask is yours?" She asked, pulling out a white hollow's mask. The designs on it were intricate and carried subtle messages of pain and rage while its soulless parody of a grin would send shivers down a normal person's spine.

Zangetsu simply smiled in a fashion reminiscent of his mask. **"'Course. Though it ain't the real deal."**

Yoruichi frowned as the mask in her fingers broke apart and dissipated into Reishi with barely a sound. "Not the real deal? What do you mean?"

Zangetsu shrugged and then held up a hand, concentrating breifly. Reishi accumulated in his palm and rapidly darkened into shades of black and red before appearing to burst, leaving a black hollow's mask in its wake. The mask clearly was in keeping with Zangetsu's inverted color scheme, with two wicked horns extending off of it and a demonic visage far more terrifying than that of the other mask.

**"This is the mask I use," **Zangetsu said, enjoying the way Yoruichi's eyes were fixed on the mask with something approaching horror. **"It's a lot more . . . fitting."**

"When will Ichigo be capable of harnessing that power?" Yoruichi asked quietly, her gaze flicking back up to meet Zangetsu's when the hollow closed his hand, breaking the mask apart and making it disappear into Reishi.

Zangetsu knew that there was a pain in his eyes that would be impossible to hide from the keen-eyed Goddess of Flash, but he tried anyway.

**"Not for a long time, Yoruichi. He ain't ready for this level yet. It's the same as bankai."**

"You've said that over and over again. Why do you keep saying that Ichigo isn't ready?"

**"'Cause it's true. If he tries ta use his true powers now, they'll kill 'im, and I can't have that."**

"I see," Yoruichi said quietly. "One last thing."

**"What?"**

"Why don't you allow Ichigo to fight using both of his blades? Why limit him to his cleaver? Wouldn't allowing him the use of both blades give him a tactical advantage over many of the Shinigami in Soul Society?"

Zangetsu considered those questions for a few seconds. He had already thought of most of them, and they had played a part in his deciding to limit Ichigo's abilities.

**"It'll be a surprise ta the captains," **he said. **"And he needs ta get stronger in multiple fighting styles ta keep his opponents off-balance. Think of it as a substitute for bankai."**

Yoruichi nodded. "That makes sense."

**"Ask Kisuke if ya have any more questions," **Zangetsu said, turning away.

He only got three steps before Yoruichi spoke again. "Wait." Zangetsu turned, communicating his impatience clearly. "Is Ichigo's inability to achieve bankai linked with your status as a hollow?"

Zangetsu, for the second time in so many minutes, cursed the Goddess of Flash's perceptiveness and remarkably quick mind. There was no doubt in Zangetsu's mind that if Ichigo tried to achieve bankai, his hollow instincts would overwhelm him and turn him into the hollow that he should never become. After a moment's hesitation, Zangetsu replied, his tone final and brooking no further conversation.

**"Yeah."**

With that, Zangetsu began walking again. Yoruichi didn't say anything more and instead just watched him go. Zangetsu could feel her gaze on his back, but he ignored it. He had a substitute Shinigami to train, and he had three days to make him strong enough to actively fight a captain without the use of bankai or Kidō, because Zangetsu hated to admit it but Ichigo's Reiatsu control was even worse than it had been the first time around thanks to his massive jump in Reiatsu.

* * *

><p>Zangetsu turned and punched the nearest skyscraper with all his strength in an attempt to keep his frustration from overwhelming him. Ichigo wasn't strong enough to beat Byakuya, even though he had forced the Kuchiki captain into the second stage of his bankai with surprising speed.<p>

Even so, the Shinigami captain had adapted to Ichigo's admittedly weak skills quickly and begun countering Ichigo's Getsuga Tenshō attacks, and he was easily capable of dodging the Getsuga Jūjishō because Ichigo couldn't fire it with enough power yet because _he didn't have the goddamn training and experience he needed_!

The skyscraper let out a massive groan and creaked ominously as the shockwaves from Zangetsu's punch echoed through it. A crater was all that remained of the area that Zangetsu had actually hit, and the with a mighty roar the building collapsed entirely, taking another two with in on its way down and creating a deafening symphony of noise that grated on Zangetsu's ears. Dust exploded outwards, enveloping Zangetsu and the surrounding area for several hundred meters in all directions.

With barely a thought, Zangetsu used Sonido and escaped the dust cloud, barely refraining from punching another building.

He'd tried so damn hard to make Ichigo strong enough but it hadn't been enough, it was _never_ enough!

There was only one thing left to do: provide Ichigo with support he couldn't refuse. Zangetsu took a deep breath, reigning in his anger with great effort and extending his senses past the inner world. He brushed against Ichigo's consciousness and latched on.

**"Let me out, King," **Zangetsu said, knowing that his words would reach Ichigo.

_"No! I can handle this!"_

**"King, this ain't somethin ya can refuse!"**

_"Don't interfere, Zangetsu! This is my fight and I'll win it!"_

The familiar determination that flooded Ichigo's mind made Zangetsu's chest ache.

A flash of pain ripped down Zangetsu's right side and he gasped in shock and staggered, clutching his abdomen. No blood dripped down from the area where Zangetsu felt as though he had been cut, but Zangetsu knew that Ichigo had just received a terrible blow from Byakuya. More pain emanated from Zangetsu's foot and then his shoulder in rapid succession, making the hollow spit out a curse.

The hollow wasted no time; he ignored the flutter of dark amusement that the situation had turned out the exact same as it had the first time around. In an instant, he had pushed aside Ichigo's weakened consciousness and seized control, just in time to prevent Ichigo from getting his head sliced off. There was nothing the hollow could do to stop the mask from forming on Ichigo's face; before, in Kisuke's basement, he had distracted Ichigo with lectures and lessons and then casually ripped off the forming hollow mask before it became noticeable. Now, he wouldn't have that option.

With a grunt, Zangetsu tightened his grip on Byakuya's sword and then pushed the captain away with enough force to send him flying. Byakuya rapidly recovered his balance, his eyes narrowing as he took in Zangetsu's appearance.

The irony of the situation hit Zangetsu like a ton of bricks, and combined with the natural insanity that always lingered at the edges of Zangetsu's mind it was more than enough to force a deranged giggle out of the hollow's mouth.

Ichigo's sudden panic as he realized his situation flooded Zangetsu's mind and fed his insanity, pushing it closer and closer to the point where it would overwhelm the hollow.

Zangetsu didn't even fully realize that the madness that he contained was rising; in a battle, it rarely mattered whether Zangetsu had gone insane or not, and Ichigo was always there to pull him back from the brink.

But Ichigo was panicking, desperately clawing for control, and that was only making things worse. Zangetsu had nothing to hold on to; his instincts were taking over and he had never had a reason to stop them before. The Old Man wasn't strong enough to hold him back, and Ichigo wasn't the same as he had been in the future.

"That mask . . . that voice . . . those eyes . . . are you a hollow?" Byakuya asked, his eyes narrowing while he watched Zangetsu. The hollow began laughing harder, his whole body shaking. After a second, however, he abruptly stopped, his laughter dying away to giggles that were silenced entirely as he began to speak.

**"What else would I fuckin be?"**

"You are not Ichigo Kurosaki."

**"Yer powers of observation ain't exaggerated."**

A sickening grin stretched over Zangetsu's features as any recognition of the enemy before him faded to the background. This was a battle, and his opponent needed to be eliminated.

He leapt forward with a cry, bringing his cleaver down hard. Byakuya went to block, but his eyes widened with surprise when he realized that the black blade was swirling with energy.

**"Getsuga Tenshō," **Zangetsu whispered, and Byakuya was engulfed in a small explosion.

The Kuchiki captain recovered, though he was panting and numerous burns now decorated his skin. Even so, he appeared to be clinging onto the idea of defeating Zangetsu. The determination was admirable, but at the moment Zangetsu was finding it to be nothing more than annoying. After all, he wanted his opponent dead, and determination was only going to drag that ordeal on longer than absolutely necessary.

Zangetsu could feel an annoying presence in the back of his mind, and he tried to push it aside. He had more important things to focus on, like wiping the enemy in front of him from existence. He attacked again, bringing both of his blades to bear in a dizzying display of skill.

But his limbs weren't always responding correctly, almost as thought there was some kind of interference, and Zangetsu was forced to disengage, though he took some satisfaction in the injuries he had inflicted on Byakuya. He had already healed the injuries that he had sustained—

Wait. When had he been injured?

Zangetsu wracked his memory, fighting through the fog that seemed to have engulfed his mind, but he came up blank.

So why was he injured?

The presence in Zangetsu's minds suddenly exploded with newfound determination and Zangetsu cried out in pain as sheer _agony_ ripped through his consciousness. A voice quickly followed.

_"GET OUT! GET OUT OF MY HEAD, ZANGETSU!"_

Zangetsu froze, the reality of what had happened to him crashing down. He only had time to whisper, "Ichigo", before he was pulled from control. He offered no resistance whatsoever and lay still when he crashed down into Ichigo's inner world. A crater formed around him and pain wracked the Zanpakutō spirit's body but he didn't care; he deserved every second of the pain for losing his mind.

He hadn't even _tried_ to stop himself! The battle rage had taken control more quickly than Zangetsu had expected and without Ichigo's raw determination things would have gone out of control very quickly.

The Quincy half of Ichigo's powers arrived a moment later and Zangetsu turned away, unable to make eye contact.

He ignored the glare of the Old Man, didn't even acknowledge it.

_WhathaveIdonewhathaveIdonewhathaveIdonewhathaveIdonewhathaveIdonewhathaveIdone?_

Zangetsu couldn't think. His mind was in chaos.

_WhathaveIdonewhathaveIdonewhathaveIdonewhathaveIdonewhathaveIdonewhathaveIdone?_

Ichigo would never trust him again, not after what he'd done. There was no doubt in Zangetsu's mind that Ichigo now knew what he was; it would be impossible not to, especially after Byakuya had asked and Zangetsu had answered affirmatively.

The moment that the hollow felt Ichigo's battle finish, he pulled himself up, still ignoring the Old Man. When Ichigo collapsed, Zangetsu materialized under his own power, catching the substitute Shinigami before he hit the ground.

Ichigo's friends were slightly behind schedule, but Zangetsu didn't care. The betrayal in Ichigo's eyes was all that Zangetsu could see and the hollow quickly backed up as Ichigo struggled into a sitting position.

Zangetsu looked at Ichigo, breathing heavily and knowing that his expression was nothing short of desperate. He felt backed into a corner, constricted. His mind repeated one thing over and over again: get away.

He had to leave.

In an instant, the hollow had ripped open a Garganta and fled, leaving Ichigo and the rest of Soul Society behind and going where they could not follow.

* * *

><p><em>AN How many of you saw that one coming? Oh, and this story is turning out to be a lot more popular than I was originally expecting. It's pretty gratifying, actually, considering that I only came to Fanfiction in the first place to improve my fiction writing in general (fun fact: I've actually written a book)._

**_Review(s):_**

**_DARKREAPER72: _**_Maybe in later chapters._

**_Dragonblaze66:_**_ I already answered that via PM a while ago. I think. Hopefully._

_Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and I hope to hear from you guys again, as well as those of you who didn't review!_

_Until we meet again,_

_-RoR_

**_Please review._**


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